The Unmasked Mystery II
by Azaelia Silmarwen
Summary: [To be re-written]. Harri and Draco are now in their 6th year. This year, Draco has been acting strangely and is keeping something secret from Harri. Will their relationship survive when she finds out the truth?
1. Summer

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter**

_Passages from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince_

_Writing from passages form Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Price (e.g. notes, letters, etc.)_

Writing (e.g. notes, letters, etc.)

**NB: PLEASE READ THE UNMASKED MYSTERY FIRST!**

* * *

**Chapter One: Summer**

The school holidays had started yet again and Harri was currently living at the Palace Acacia, the birthplace of Salazar Slytherin, located in Fen, fresh from her fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. What a year she had too! Dating her once school enemy, making secret defence club underneath the nose of Dolores Umbridge and then battling Death Eaters in the Department of Mysteries, over a prophecy made a year before she was born, before she was kidnapped by her Uncle Tom, otherwise known as Lord Voldemort. However, the weirdest thing that happened that year was when Voldemort admitted to her that he didn't want to kill her and was currently looking out for her well-being as any normal uncle would, during which time she had a vision of three children playing together, a group of people whose faces were blurred except the one in front that looked like Tom Riddle otherwise Tom Dumbledore.

It was this vision that Harri was pondering over as she sat on top of one of the palace's tallest towers' roof as she watched the sun begin to rise into the sky, bringing forth a new day. Another day, Harri would sit and ponder the vision, seeing as nothing would distract her from it. When she first arrived at Acacia is was able to keep her thoughts at bay, telling the staff everything that had happened as they welcomed her home and as she did her summer homework, but once everything had settled down and her homework was completed, the only thing she could think about was the vision. She dried flying, cleaning her room, reading, writing, making potions…but nothing worked. What she needed was to talk to someone about it, but who? Severus was away somewhere in Japan, her grandparents were still at Hogwarts, along with Severus' fiancée Aurora Sinistra, Hogwarts Astronomy professor. Rhiannon away also, currently shopping in France with a few friends. Sirius and Remus were at the Ministry, arguing Sirius' case of him being an innocent man, which didn't seem to be going so well. Then there was her friends and Draco, she hadn't told them about it and she didn't dare to write it in a letter, besides, it wasn't something you could explain in a letter. The only other person she could talk to was Voldemort, seeing as she was able to visit him whenever she wanted. The only problem was that the vision had something to do with him. Something that she knew he wouldn't react well to, so she couldn't talk to him either. She was stuck.

Harri signed and climbed to her feet. Quietly, she climbed down the tower and climbed through the window leading to her room. Harri's room was bigger than the average bedroom. Its walls were painted with green vines and posters and paintings hung off them. They were posters of Quidditch teams and bands that she liked and the paintings were of Dragons, Valkyries and of other mythical creatures and warriors. It's safe to say, that if anyone walked into Harri's bedroom they would know that she wasn't a girly-girl.

Harri walked over to her desk and sat down, after grabbing a book from the bookshelf next to the desk on Divination. Harri's desk, at the present time had a number of newspapers laid piled in the little shelf in the middle of the hutch of the desk. Ever since the battle at the Department of Mysteries, a number of events had happened. Harrietta Dumbledore_: The Chosen One?_, _Scrimgeour Succeeds Fudge_and _Ministry Guarantees Students' Safety_ were a few of the news headings for the past few days. Harri was especially happy to see that Fudge was no longer Minister, but she wasn't sure about this Scrimgeour character. True, he was Head of the Auror Department, but that meant nothing to Harri. What she needed to know was if he was capable of running a country. Next to the papers was a brochure on how to protect oneself and family against the Dark Forces. When Harri read the brochure during breakfast, she snorted loudly, startling one of the servants nearby. She couldn't help it, for most of it, no sorry, all of it was common sense for her, but she kept the brochure anyway.

When the clock struck eight, Harri placed her book back (it didn't even help with her vision) and walked down to the dinning hall for breakfast. Not paying attention to where she was going, she walked straight into someone and would have fallen to the floor if that someone hadn't caught her.

'Sorry, I didn't mean to…Uncle Sev! Your back!' Harry said, looking up to see whom she walked into.

'What, is that all I get, is that your back? What about a hug?' Teased Severus, grinning down at his niece.

'I was getting to that!' Laughed Harri, rapping her arms around her uncle's waist. 'I missed you.'

'I missed you to.' He then snorted, 'only been apart for two weeks and already we are missing each other.'

Together then walked to the dinning hall, Severus telling Harri about his trip. 'That reminds me,' Severus said, once they were sitting down at the table. 'I got you this. I hope you like it.' He handed Harri a long package.

Harri carefully ripped open the paper (she would use it for her scrapbooking) and opened the box the present was in. Inside the box was a Japanese Katana Sword, a curved, single-edged weapon that was used by the Samurai warrior class in Japan.

'Do you like?' Asked Severus.

'Like it? That would be an understatement! I love it! Thank you so much, Uncle Sev!' Harri exclaimed joyfully, throwing her arms around Severus.

'I'm glad you like it. It was very hard to come by, but this particular Katana was made back during the sixteenth century. In saying this, it was bought as a decoration.'

'I kinda figured that out myself.' Harry said, taking a better look at her Katana. It was roughly twenty-four inches long with a black Tsuka (handle) with a silver diamonded shaped pattern going up the handle. Right at the end of the Tsuka was a golden Kashiri (Pommel) with some sort of symbol on it. The Fuchi (collar), Tsuba (guard) and Habaki (blade collar) were also golden. The Shinogi (Grind Ridge) or Hamon (Temper line), Harri couldn't remember what it was called, was a pattern that looked like waves sound the silver blade. The Kisaki (blade point) was still sharp. Once Harri had finished examining the Katana, she turned her attention to the Saya (Scabbard). The scabbard throat was the same golden colour as the sword and the pattern of the scabbard was of what looked like a dragon.

While Harri was examining the Katana, Albus, Minerva and Aurora walked in, having finished everything that they needed to do at Hogwarts.

'Did you have to buy her a weapon, Sev?' Asked Minerva, scaring Harri, who hadn't seen them enter. 'Sorry, honey, I didn't mean to scare you.' Minerva added.

'That's alright, grandmother.' Harri said recovering and getting up to greet the rest of her family.

'Harri, would you mind helping me out with a little problem tonight please?' Albus asked taking a seat next to his granddaughter.

'Sure, what do you need help with?' Harri asked, eager to help out and take her mind off the vision.

'Just a little staffing issue is all.'

'If it is to do with the staff, than why do you need my help? Wouldn't grandmother, Uncle Sev or Aurora be of more help?' Asked a perplexed Harri.

'No, only you can help me. Anyway, I better be off…'

'Grandfather, what did you do to your hand?' Harri interrupted him, catching sight of her grandfather's blackened hand, which looked as though the skin had been burnt away.

'I'll explain later, Harri.' Said Albus rising to his feet, kissing Harri lightly on top of her head, kissed Minerva, said goodbye and left.

'Grandmother, what happened to grandfather's hand. It looks as though its dead or something?' Harri said, turning to her grandmother.

'I honestly don't know Harri. He hasn't told me what he did to himself. In fact, he hasn't told anyone.' Minerva said shaking her head.

* * *

Harri spent the rest of the day brewing potions with Severus. A couple of times she thought about bringing up her vision but she couldn't do it. As she thought about it, she knew that her family would be the worst people to talk about it with, seeing as Voldemort was a hurtful topic to talk to her family about, even though they all put on a brave face.

After dinner, Albus and Harri headed out into the night. Albus ended up Apparating them to the small village of Budleigh Babberton, a Muggle village. The two of them walked in silence past an empty inn, houses, telephone boxes and bus shelters.

'_I saw in the Daily Prophet that Fudge has been sacked_.' Harri said conversationally, as they walked up a steep side-street.

'_Correct. He has been replaced, as I am sure you also saw, by Rufus Scrimgeour, who use to be Head of the Auror Office._' Replied Albus.

'_Do you think he's good?'_

'Well, _he is able, certainly. A more decisive and forceful personality than Cornelius. He is a man of action and having fought Dark wizards for most of his working life, does not underestimate Lord Voldemort. This is he place, _Harri,' he added as they arrived outside _a small, neat stone house set in its own garden._

'_Oh dear. Oh dear, dear, dear.'_ Said Albus.

_The front door was hanging off its hinges. _Albus quickly _glanced up and down the street_, which _seemed quite deserted_.

'_Wand out and follow me, _Harri_,' he said quietly, _walking_ swiftly and silently up the garden path, _pushing _the front door _open _very slowly, his wand raised at the ready._

'_Lumos.'_

Albus' _wand-tip ignited, casting its light up a narrow hallway. To the left, another door stood open. Holding his illuminate wand aloft, _Albus_ walked into the sitting room with _Harri _right behind him._

_A scene of total devastation met their eyes. A grandfather clock lay splintered at their feet, its face cracked, its pendulum lying a little further away like a dropped sword. A piano was on its side, its keys strewn across the floor. The wreckage of a fallen chandelier glittered nearby. Cushions lay deflated, feathers oozing from slashes in their sides; fragments of glass and china lay like powder over everything. _Albus _raised his wand even higher, so that its light was thrown upon the wall, where something darkly red and glutinous was spattered over the wallpaper._

'I wonder what happened here,' Harri said quietly. 'It wasn't Death Eaters, I know that much. If it had of been them, then there would have been a Dark Mark outside and they wouldn't have made this much mess. The mess seems…different to if there was an actual attack. It seems…over the top. Besides, there wouldn't be Dragon blood on the wall.' She added when she recognised what kind of blood it was.

'I agree with you, Harri.' Said Albus, _peering behind an overstuffed armchair lying on its side and without warning, _Albus suddenly_ swooped, plunging the tip of his wand into the seat of the overstuffed armchair, which yelled._

'_Ouch!'_

'_Good evening, Horace,' said _Albus_, straightening up again._

Harri watched as the armchair changed into _an enormously fat, bald old man who was massaging his lower belly and squinting up at _Albus_ with an aggrieved and watery eye._

'_There was no need to stick the wand in that hard,' he said gruffly, clambering to his feet. 'It hurt.'_

_The wand-light sparkled on his shinny pate, his prominent eyes, his enormous, silver walrus-like moustache, and the highly polished buttons on the maroon velvet jacket he was wearing over a pair of lilac silk pyjamas. The top of his head barely reached _Albus' _chin._

'_What gave it away?' He grunted as he staggered to his feet, still rubbing his lower belly. He seemed remarkably unabashed for a man who had just been discovered pretending to be an armchair._ Thought Harri.

'_My dear Horace,' said _Albus_, looking amused, 'if the Death Eaters really had come to call, the Dark Mark would have been set over the house.'_

_The wizard clapped a pudgy hand to his vast forehead. 'The Dark Mark,' he muttered. 'Knew there was something…ah well. Wouldn't have had time, anyway. I'd only just put the finishing touches to my upholstery when you entered the room.' He heaved a great sigh that made the ends of his moustache flutter._

'_Would you like my assistance clearing up?' Asked _Albus_ politely._

'_Please,' said the other._

_They stood back to back and waved their wands in one identical sweeping motion. The furniture flew back to its original place; ornaments re-formed in midair; feather zoomed into their cushions; torn books repaired themselves as they landed upon their shelves; oil lanterns soared on to side tables and reignited; a vast collection of silver frames flew glittering across the room and alighted, whole and untarnished, upon a desk; rips, cracks and holes healed everywhere; and the walls wiped themselves clean._

Once the room was back to normal, Albus' friend caught sight of Harri. And it was about time too! Thought Harri.

'And who might this lovely young lady be?' The man questioned, looking at Albus.

'This is my beautiful, granddaughter, Harrietta Dumbledore, but we call her Harri for short. Harri was one of the reasons that I knew you were still here. She has a keen eye and knows a lot about raids, fights and blood. Anyway, Harri this is my old friend, Horace Slughorn.'

_Slughorn turned on _Albus_, his expression shrewd._

'_So that's how you thought you'd persuade me, is it? Well, the answer's still no, Albus.'_

'_I suppose we can have a drink, at least? For old time sake?' Asked _Albus.

_Slughorn hesitated _before saying _ungraciously, 'All right then, one drink.'_

Albus _smiled at _Harri_ and directed _her_ towards a chair not unlike the one that Slughorn had so recently impersonated, which stood right beside the newly burning fire and a bright glowing oil lamp. _Harri _took the seat with the distinct impression that _her grandfather _wanted to keep _her_ as visible as possible. Certainly when Slughorn, who had been busy with decanters and glasses, turned to face the room again, his eyes fell immediately upon _Harri.

'_Humph,' he said, looking away quickly as though frightened of hurting his eyes. 'Here -' He gave a drink to _Albus_, who had say down without invitation, thrust the tray at _Harri_ and then sank into the cushions of the repaired sofa and a disgruntled silence. His legs were so short that they did not touch the floor._

'_Well, how have you been keeping, Horace?' _Albus _asked._

'_Not so well,' said Slughorn at once. 'Weak chest. Wheezy Rheumatism too. Can't move like I use to. Well, that's to be expected. Old age. Fatigue.'_

'_And yet you must have moved fairy quickly to prepare such a welcome for us at such short notice. You can't have had more than three minutes' warning?'_

_Slughorn said, half-irritably, half-proudly, 'Two. Didn't hear my Intruder Charm go off, I was taking a bath. Still,' he added sternly, seeing to pull himself back together again, 'the fact remains that I'm an old man, Albus. A tired old man who's earned the right to a quiet life and a few creature comforts.'_

'_You're not yet as old as I am Horace.'_

'_Well, maybe you ought to think about retirement yourself,' said Slughorn bluntly. His pale gooseberry eyes had found Dumbledore's injured hand. 'Reactions not what they, were, I see.'_

'_You're quite right,' said _Albus_ sincerely. 'I am undoubtfully slower than I was…'_

The two of them continued to talk together about a few other topics, during which time Harri was wondering why and what her grandfather needed help with. Once more Albus tried to convince Slughorn to return to Hogwarts and when he did not succeed, he stood up rather suddenly. Something Harri found really rude of her grandfather, but she soon forgave him when he asked where the bathroom was.

After a few minutes of silence, after Albus left the room, Slughorn spoke. '_Don't think I don't know why he's brought you,' he said abruptly._

Harri merely looked at him. Am I the only one that can't see what's going on? Thought Harri. As Slughorn's eyes slid from her scar and began to take in the rest of her face.

'_You look very like your father.'_

'_Yeah, I've been told.'_

'_Except for your eyes. You've got…'_

'_My mother's eyes, yeah.'_

'_You shouldn't have favourites as a teacher, of course, but she was mine. Lily Evans. One of the brightest I have ever taught. Vivacious, you know. Charming girl. I use to tell her she ought to have been in my House. Very cheeky answers I used to get back, too.'_

'_Which was your House?'_

'_I was Head of Slytherin, _just like your Uncle Severus is now. I suppose you ended up in Gryffindor like her, James, Minerva and Albus. _Your mother was Muggle-born, of course. Couldn't believe it when I found out. Thought she must have been pure-blood, she was so good.'_

'_One of my best friends is Muggle-born and she's one of the bests in our year.'_

'_Funny how that happens, isn't it?'_

'_No, not really.'_ Harri said coldly

Just as Slughorn was about to answer, Albus walked back into the room. 'Harri, I think that we should be off seeing as we _have trespassed upon Horace's hospitality quite long enough_.'

Harri quickly walked over to Albus, not knowing whether she liked Slughorn or not.

'_I'll do it_, Albus.' Slughorn said all of a sudden. 'I'll come out of retirement, but I want a pay rise!'

'Excellent! We shall see you on the first of September, goodbye.' Said Albus, turning and leaving the room. After saying bye, Harri quickly followed him.

Once out on the street Albus said, 'Thank you for helping me Harri.'

'Normally I would say that you're welcome, but seeing as I don't know what I just helped you with I'll say, with what?'

'What you did was show Horace exactly what he would be gaining if he returned to Hogwarts. You see, Horace _likes his comfort_, not to mention _the company of the famous, successful and the powerful_. When he use to teach at Hogwarts, he formed a club full of his favourite students, the ones that he could see going places and he would help them reach success in life. In saying this, if he were to return to Hogwarts and start the club up again, then he would have a chance of collecting you, for you would be his _jewel of his collection.'_

Harri was not happy about that, but she knew that her grandfather must have some reason for Slughorn to return to Hogwarts, so she would just put up with it.

* * *

Two days later, Harri went over to the Weasley's to stay for the week, before going back home.

Severus Apparated Harri to the Burrow at ten o'clock on the Monday, after giving Harri a lecture about the security measures that were in place. After Severus knocked on the door, they heard a nervous, but familiar voice call out, 'Who's there?'

'Severus Dumbledore, here to drop off one Harrietta Dumbledore.'

The door quickly opened to reveal Mrs Weasley.

'It's good to see you again please come in.' She said, giving Harri an enormous hug.

'No thanks, Molly. I have to be off. I will see you on Friday, Harri. Make sure you behave yourself.' He added sternly.

'I always do!' Harri said cheekily, giving Severus a hug goodbye.

Severus nodded to Mrs Weasley walked a few paces away and Apparated away.

Harri watched Severus disappear before she turned back to Mrs Weasley, who was currently looking her up and down. 'You're just like Ron. Both of you have grown a lot in such short time. Are you hungry at all, Harri dear?'

'No thank you, I had a big breakfast…'

'HARRI!'

Harri whipped around and embraced Hermione in a hug as she came running towards him, followed by Ron and Ginny.

'You all right?' Asked Ron; embracing her in a hug the moment Hermione let go.

'Never better, what about you guys.' Said Harri, now embracing Ginny.

'Not bad, did you only just arrive?'

'Yeah, only a minute a go, if that.'

'So, what have you been up to?'

'Nothing much. I spent the first two weeks of the holidays by myself. Rhiannon's away shopping and hanging out with some of her old friends in France, Severus was away in Japan, and my grandparents and Aurora were at Hogwarts. During that time I did my homework, read, wrote, made potions and other bits and pieces. What about you?'

''Arri!'

Harri looked past her friends towards the newcomer.

_'Eet 'as been too long_!' Continued Fleur Delacour.

'Indeed it has, Fleur.' Said Harri giving her a hug. True they had started off on rocky ground in the beginning, but after the Second Task, they had become good friends. Not as good as Ron, Hermione and Draco, but good nevertheless. 'What are you doing here?'

_'Bill and I are going to be married!'_

_'Congratulations!'_

'_Bill is very busy at ze moment, working very 'ard, and I only work part-time at Gringotts for my Eenglish, so he brought me 'ere for a few days to get to know 'is family properly. _I've got to go to work. I 'ill see you later 'Arri!' Then she quickly left the room through the front door and Apparated away.

'Mum and I hate her, so does Hermione!' Said Ginny, glaring at the spot where Fleur had been.

'Yeah, well, we'll just have to learn to live with it, seeing as Bill doesn't seem to be changing his mind anytime soon.' Sighed Mrs Weasley. 'Come on Ginny, let's go and get the groceries.'

Mrs Weasley and Ginny then left, leaving Harri, Ron and Hermione all alone.

'Come on Harri, I'll show you where you will be staying.' Said Ron, leading them up stairs to the Twins room. 'Fred and George live in the apartment above their joke shop.' Said Ron, seeing Harri frown slightly in confusion.

Harri sat down on one of the beds and Ron sat on the one opposite her, talking, while _Hermione peered into one of Fred and George's boxes._

_'What's this?' Asked Hermione_, interrupting Harri and Ron's conversation.

_'Dunno,' said Ron, 'but if Fred and George've left it here, it's probably not ready for the joke shop yet, so be careful.'_

'I take it that their business is going well then?' Enquired Harri.

_'That's an understatement. They're raking in Galleons! I can't wait to see the place. We haven't been to Diagon Alley yet, because Mum says Dad's got to be there for extra security and he's been really busy at work, but it sounds excellent.'_

'Oh, I just remembered, my grandfather's going to be giving me private lessons this year.' Said Harri conversationally. Then she went on to explain about the prophecy and what it meant.

When Harri had finished, they all stared at each other in silence, before…

_BANG!_

_'Hermione!_' Cried Harri and Ron, _as Hermione vanished behind a puff of black smoke_.

_Hermione emerged, coughing, out of the smoke, clutching the telescope and sporting a brilliantly purple eye._

_'I squeezed it and it – it punched me!' She gasped._

_Sure enough, they now saw a tiny fist on a long spring protruding from the end of the telescope._

_'Don't worry,' said Ron, who was plainly trying not to laugh, 'Mum'll fix that, she's good at healing minor injuries -'_

_'Oh, well, never mind that now!' Said Hermione hastily_. 'Harri, _oh,_ Harri…'

She sat down next to her on the edge of the bed.

_'We wondered, after we got back from the Ministry…obviously, we didn't want to say anything to you, but from what Lucius Malfoy said about the prophecy, how it was about you and Voldemort, well, we thought it might be something like this…oh, _Harri_…' She stared at _her_, then whispered, 'Are you scared?'_

'To be honest, no.' Harri said bluntly, well, at the moment she wasn't scared. When the time actually came, then she will probably be petrified.

Hermione then went on to tall about the different kinds of magic that Albus was likely to teach her, but Harri was only half listening. Harri started to listen fully again when Hermione changed the subject.

_'You know, I wonder when our O.W.L. results are coming?'_

_'Any day now it should be, it's being a month hasn't it?' Said Ron._

'No, you should be getting them today, I did anyway.' Said Harri. Albus had given it to her during breakfast. Harri was that nervous about what she got the she ended up getting Severus to open it up to tell her if it was bad or not.

'How did I do?' Harri asked Severus.

'Very bad.' Severus said bluntly, reading the piece of paper with her results on it.

'What?' Harri said, panicking. She quickly snatched the paper out of Severus' hands and read over it before reaching taking the cushion off the seat next to her and throwing it at her uncle, who was nearly on the ground laughing.

'That's not funny!' Sulked Harri, but she couldn't help the small smile that was appearing on her face.

'Yes, it was. That was classic. I can't believe that you thought that you would get bad marks!' Laughed Severus.

'Don't keep us waiting you two, what did you get Harri?' Asked Aurora.

'I got an 'Outstanding' for all my subjects except History of Magic where I got an 'Acceptable' but I knew I wouldn't have gotten an outstanding mark there seeing as I never finished the exam paper, and Divination where I got a 'Poor'.'

Harri smiled at the memory, and then she realised that she was sitting all by herself in the room. The others must have gone down to see if their O.W.L. results had arrived.

When Harri arrived downstairs, she saw that Mrs Weasley and Ginny had arrived home from shopping and Ron and Hermione were currently reading their results.

'I passed.' Said Ron, when Harri went and stood next to him.

'Congratz mate.' Smiled Harri. 'What about you Hermione?'

'She did great as well, ten 'Outstandings' and one 'Exceeds Expectations'.' Answered Ron.

Hermione glared at him. 'I'm quiet capable of answering for myself, Ron. Anyway, how did you go Harri?' Harri quickly recounted what happened that morning and by the end, Ron was on the ground laughing.

'You know, if you had of told me that Sev could tease, a few years ago, I would have told you that you were insane.' He laughed.

* * *

The week at the Weasley's flew by and Harri was back at Acacia once more, helping Severus with potions for the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts and at Acacia. Two days after Harri arrived home from the Burrow, she got a huge surprise. When she walked into the dinning room for dinner, she noticed that there were more people than usual. Standing in the room was Severus, Aurora, Minerva, Albus, Remus and Sirius, all of whom were smiling, except Sirius who was positively beaming. Harri stood there staring at her godfather before she ran to him screaming, 'You're free? They let you off, didn't they?'

'Yes, I'm a free man. Free to go where I want and I no longer need to hide!' Sirius laughed, catching Harri in his arms, holding her tightly.

'It took long enough too.' Remus said, smiling. Harri looked at him more closely and saw that he looked exhausted, but happy nevertheless. 'You'd think that after everything Albus said and Sirius not having the Dark Mark would be enough proof, but no, they had him asking questions, under Veritaserum, over and over again as though he was somehow lying under it.' He said shaking his head.

'I was just saying before you came in, Harri, that this calls for a celebration!' Said Aurora.

'To right it does!' Agreed Harri.

The rest of the night was spent with close family and friends laughing and joking around, but Harri noticed that not everyone was that happy. She had been watching Severus, Remus and Sirius, who were all talking and laughing together, thinking about how they had all become close and good friends, after everything they had been through, when out the corner of her eye she spotted Tonks sitting by herself. Looking closer, she noticed that she seemed drawn and looked ill. She also noticed that her hair was quite…dull, nothing like the bubblegum pink that she normally had. After studying her for a bit longer, she observed that Tonks eyes were fixed on Remus. Curious, and worried, about Tonks behaviour, Harri slowly made her way over and sat down next to Tonks.

'You like him, do you?' Harri asked quietly.

'I don't know what you mean.' Tonks said too quickly tearing her eyes away from the laughing Remus.

'Yes you do, Tonks. It's written all over your face. You have a crush on Remus.' Harri said gently.

'Okay, you caught me. I have a crush on an older man, who couldn't care less.' Tonks said bitterly, with tears beginning to form at the corner of her eyes.

'Did he reject you?'

'Yes, he said that he was too old for me and that I shouldn't love someone like him. That he was too poor and wasn't whole.'

'Listen, Tonks. I may not a love guru or anything, but I think that Remus actually loves you to; otherwise he wouldn't be making all of those excuses. So, maybe if you give him a little space he might come around, especially if Sirius and Uncle Severus talk to him.'

'What? Why would they talk to him about that?'

'Cause they are guys. I caught a Draco giving Ron advice one time. They listen to other guys. Trust me on this.' Harri said sincerely.

* * *

Another week past and Harri's sixteenth birthday was upon them. Rhiannon, who had arrived home the night after Sirius' official release, had planned her a gigantic celebration. All the Weasleys', except Percy obviously, were invited along with Hermione, Neville, Luna, Draco, Remus, Tonks, Fleur, and many of the Order members and Hogwarts staff.

At six o'clock, on the thirty-first of July, Harri stood at the palace entrance greeting her guests. By six-thirty, all of her guests had arrived…except Draco. Hermione, Neville, Luna, Ginny, Fred, George, Ron and Harri all stood outside the dinning hall talking and laughing, even though Harri's laugh was forced, and they all noticed it. No matter what her friends did, no matter how many jokes Fred and George told, they could not make her happy, and they knew why. Only Draco could make her happy.

'…want something to drink?' Said Neville, looking at Harri, who didn't answer. 'Harri?'

'Huh, sorry Neville, what did you say?' Asked Harri, snapping back into reality, and looking over at Neville, who was holding two drinks.

'I asked if you want something to drink,' he repeated holding out a goblet to her.

'Thanks Neville.' Smiled Harri. Just as she was about to take a sip, she stopped half way and turned quickly to face the door. She quickly handed her drink to Hermione and ran towards the door, flinging her arms around the young man that had just entered, knocking him to the ground. Making all the other guests laugh.

'Ouch, nice to see you too, babe!' Draco said, looking up at his girlfriend.

'Oh, sorry about that. I was afraid that you weren't going to come.' Apologised Harri, helping Draco to his feet.

'Yeah, I'm sorry that I didn't mean to be late, um, lost track of time.' Said Draco, fumbling his pockets. 'Happy Birthday.' He added, handing Harri a rose, but it was not any kind of rose. True it its petals were red and the stalk was green, and looked like any freshly cut rose you can buy your girlfriends for Valentine's Day, the only difference was that this rose was made out of glass.

'It's beautiful, thank you, Draco!' Harri said looking down at the rose. Then she looked up at him smiling, but it was soon replaced with a small frown of concern. 'Draco, are you all right? You don't look to well.'

'Just a little tired is all. Hey guys, how are you going?' Draco said, looking over at his over at the others who had moved forward to greet him.

'Better, now that you're here. She was like the walking dead before you came.' Joked Ron, clasping hands with Draco.

'Yeah, sorry about that guys,' Harry muttered, with a tint of red hitting her cheeks.

'That's alright, we understand.' Said Ginny.

'Ladies and gentlemen,' called on of the servants. 'If you would please enter the dinning hall. Dinner is about to be served.'

The dinner began with a light entrée of either soup or salad. Then was the main course of chicken or beef. Finally, there was a whole sort of different chocolate desserts.

'I never thought that I would be in a room where each spoon had a different meaning,' muttered Ron. 'Who cares what size spoon you use to eat with.'

'I agree.' Said Ginny and Neville in unison.

'You know that you can use whatever spoon that you want.' Said Harri, looking at her friends trying not to laugh at them. 'Nobody will care.'

'Yeah, but then we would be out of place!' Said Ginny.

'We already are out of place.' Said Ron. 'The only ones that aren't, are Harri and Draco. What's up with you anyway, Draco? Something bothering you?' He added when he saw Draco picking at his food.

'Just a little tired, that's all.' Draco said again. 'Speaking of which, you wouldn't mind if I headed out early, would you Harri?' He added, looking at Harri.

In Harri's mind she was screaming at him, yes I do mind that you are leaving early, seeing as you arrived late, but instead she replied, 'No, I don't mind. I'll see you out.'

'Thanks.'

Together, Harri and Draco rose and left the hall, with many eyes watching them leave.

'I'm sorry to spoil your birthday.' Said Draco, looking down at her, running his fingers through her soft hair, when they arrived at a fireplace.

'No, you haven't spoilt it. I'm glad you came, and I will be even happier once your feeling better.' She replied, before kissing him passionately.

When they broke apart, Draco stared down at her for a few moments; sadly in Harri's opinion and he had another emotion lingering in his eyes that she couldn't place, before he turned at Flooed back to Malfoy Manor.

Slowly, Harri walked back to the dinning hall, only to find most of her other guest beginning to leave. In the end, only her family, godfather, the Weasley's, Fleur, Remus, Tonks and Aurora were left, so they all retreated to one of the longue rooms to relax and talk.

'Did you hear that there has been a couple more Dementor attacks today?' Tonks asked.

'Yeah, those creatures have been nothing but trouble. The Ministry should have never gotten them to guard Azkaban.' Said Severus, taking a sip of wine, while Aurora rested her head on his shoulder. 'Those poor people, not to mention their families.'

'I heard that Igor Karkaroff's body was found as well.' Said Remus. 'It was found in a shack up north, with the Dark Mark set above it. _Frankly, I'm surprised he stayed alive for even a year after deserting the Death Eaters_. Didn't your brother only manage to stay alive a few days after he left the Death Eaters, Sirius?'

'From what I heard, yes. Though no one actually knows how he died. Do Severus?' Said Sirius.

'To be honest, even the Death Eaters don't know the full story. Come to think about it, I'm not sure even the Dark Lord knows.' Severus said thoughtfully.

'Did you guys hear about Florean Fortescue?' _Asked Bill,_ _who was being piled with wine by Fleur._

'_The man that ran the ice-dream place in Diagon Alley_?' Harri asked quickly, looking up from the game she was playing the Hermione, Ginny, Ron, Fred and George. '_He use to give me free ice-creams. What's happened to him?'_

'Dragged off, by the look of his place.'

'_Why?' Asked Ron._ They had all abandoned their game and were watching and listening to the conversation with much interest.

'Who know? He must've upset them somehow. He was a good man, Florean.'

'_Talking of Diagon Alley,' said Mr Weasley, 'looks like Ollivander's gone too.'_

'_The wand-maker?' Said Ginny, looking startled._

'_That's the one. Shop's empty. No sign of a struggle. No one knows whether he left voluntarily or was kidnapped.'_

'_But wands – what'll people do for wands?'_

'_They'll make do with other makers,' said _Remus_. 'But Ollivander was the best, and if the other side have got him it's not good for us.'_

The rest of the topics weren't as grisly, unless you count Minerva asking Harri about Draco.

'Was Draco all right, Harri, he didn't seem himself today?' She asked.

'I don't think he was. Every time someone asked him he would brush it off by saying that he was tired and then look around for something else to talk about.' Harri said, sadly. 'And when I said goodnight to him, he was looking at me sadly and…well, I could decipher what the other emotion was. I'm really worried about him.'

'I'm sure his just a little bit stressed out, with Lucius being in Azkaban and all.' Said Aurora, reasonably. 'You watch, he will be back to his old self in no time.'

'As long as it's not his old, old self.' Said Ron. 'I hated the arrogant Draco Malfoy.'

Harri looked back at Aurora and gave her a smile. She was probably right. Draco would be back to his old self. It's not like he was hiding something from her or anything. Harri quickly went back to the game she was playing. As a result, she missed the look exchanged between Severus and Albus.

* * *

Two days later, Minerva gave Harri her Hogwarts letter, over breakfast.

'I still don't know why you bother giving me the letter.' Harri said, opening the envelope and pulling out its contents. 'What the…?' Something had just fallen into Harri's lap as she opened the envelope. It was a small red badge with the Gryffindor crest on it along with a "C". Harri stared at, blankly, while her family sat there waiting for her reaction, then… 'OH MY GOD! You've made me Quidditch Captain! Thank you, thankyou, thankyou!' Harri squealed with joy, jumping up and hugging her grandfather and grandmother.

'Seeing as the lifetime Quidditch ban has been lifted, we couldn't think of a better person to give it to, even you Uncle Sev agrees.' Minerva said, smiling.

'Don't know why. Poor Slytherin won't stand a chance now.' He joked.

'Can I Floo call the Burrow to make a time when we can all get together and get our belongings? And then Malfoy Manor too?' Harri asked.

'The Burrow, yes, but the Malfoy's aren't at Malfoy Manor at the moment.' Said Severus. 'They're in Mexico at the moment, with Blaise Zabini's family.'

'Oh, okay. Well, is there any days out of the question for us to go.' Harri asked, slightly disappointed that she couldn't speak to Draco.

'Any days fine with us.' Replied Aurora.

'Okay, if off.'

Harri went to her room and fire called the Burrow, knowing that Hermione was there as well. When her head arrived at the Burrow's fireplace she saw Ron, Hermione and Ginny all sitting at the kitchen table eating.

'Having a nice breakfast?' She asked, making them all jump. Ginny ended up spilling her juice down the front of her. 'Sorry, about that' She said as they all wiped around.'

'Harri! What are you doing here?' Asked Hermione, kneeling down by the fire, followed by Ron and Ginny.

'You should be getting our Hogwarts letters today, so I came to make a time when we could go and get our stuff together.' She replied.

'That's a good idea,' said Mrs Weasley, walking into the room. 'We'll go this Saturday then, _as long as your father doesn't have to go into work again. I'm not going there without him.'_

'_Mum, d'you honestly think You-Know-Who's going to be hiding behind a bookshelf in Flourish and Blotts?' Sniggered Ron._

'_Fortescue and Ollivander went on holiday, did they?' Said Mrs Weasley, firing up at once. 'If you think that security's a laughing matter you can stay behind and I'll get your things myself -'_

'_No, I wanna come, I want to see Fred and George's shop!' Said Ron hastily._

'_Then you just buck up your ideas, young man, before I decide you're too immature to come with us!' Said Mrs Weasley angrily, _walking from the room._ 'And that goes for returning to Hogwarts, as well!'_ She added over her shoulder.

'_Ron turned to stare incredulously at _Harri_ as his mother stormed out of the room. 'Blimey…you can't even make a joke around here any more…'_

'Well, she did have a point.' Said Hermione.

Harri, seeing Ron's mouth open to argue back, quickly said goodbye and left.

Saturday morning soon came and Severus, Aurora and Harri all Apparated to Diagon Alley, and walked to Gringotts where they would be meeting the Weasley's. On the way to Gringotts a seedy-looking little wizard was selling some amulets, that was suppose to be effective against werewolves, Dementors and Inferi.

'Would you like to buy one for your little girl, sir? Help protect your pretty little nec…' The man broke off as soon as he saw whom he was talking to.

Severus was glaring at the man. 'Hand them all over now.' He said deadly.

'And why should I do that?' The man asked, but he sounded unsure.

'I'll tell you why. If you hand them over now, your fine won't be as harsh…and because I don't trust you.' He added bluntly.

The man, cursing under his breath, reluctantly handed them over to Severus before hurrying away.

'At least Arthur will be able to lock Goldwin away.' Severus said, looking through the box of amulets.

'Oh, do you know him?' Asked Aurora.

'No, never seen him before in my life.'

'Then…how did you know his name?'

'The idiot left his contact details in the box.' Severus said simply, holding up a contact card. Harri laughed. 'Come on, let's go and meet the Weasley's.' He said.

They met up with the Weasley's at Gringotts and Severus handed the box of amulets, 'When you go back to work, here's one man that you can arrest. He was selling amulets to protect you from werewolves, Dementors and Inferi.' He said.

'Thankyou for that Severus, but remember that we are here to get the kids school supplies!' Said Mrs Weasley, looking anxious. '_I think that we'd better do Madam Malkin's first, Hermione wants new dress robes and Ron's showing too much ankle in his school robes, and you must need new ones too, _Harri, _you've grown so much – come on, everyone…'_

'_Molly, it doesn't make sense for all of us to go to Madam Malkin's,' said Mr Weasley. 'Why don't those three go with _Severus and Aurora_, and we can go to Flourish and Blotts and get everyone's school books?'_

'_I don't know,' said Mrs Weasley anxiously, clearly torn between a desire to finish the shopping quickly and the wish to stick together in a pack. '_Severus, _do you think…?'_

'Don't worry, Molly. Nobody's stupid enough to mess with Aurora or me. The kids will be safe with us.' Severus said gently.

_Mrs Weasley did not look entirely convinced, but allowed the separation, scurrying off towards Flourish and Blotts with her husband and Ginny while _Harri, Aurora, Severus, _Ron and Hermione set off for Madam Malkin's._

When they arrived at Madam Malkin's, Severus held the door open to let them all in, before closing it behind himself. _It appeared, at first glace to be empty, but no sooner had the door swung shut behind them than they heard a familiar voice issuing from behind a rack of dress robes in spangled green and blue._

'…_not a child, in case you haven't noticed, Mother. I am perfectly capable of doing my shopping __**alone**__.'_

_There was a clucking noise and a voice _Harri_ recognised as that of Madam Malkin said, 'Now, dear, your mother's quite right, none of us is suppose to go wandering around on our own any more, it's got nothing to do with being a child…'_

'_Watch where you're sticking that pin, will you!'_

_A teenage boy with a pale, pointed face and white-blonde hair appeared from behind the rack wearing a handsome set of dark green robes that glittered with pins around the hem and the edges of the sleeves. He strode to the mirror and examined himself; it was a few moments before he noticed _Harri_, Ron, Hermione,_ Aurora and Severus _reflected over his shoulder. _If possible, he paled when he caught sight of them.

'Hi Draco.' Harri said nervously. Since when did Draco take on that sort of attitude? She hadn't seen him like that since their fourth year; and why did Draco pale when he saw them? It didn't make sense.

'Hi,' was all he said.

'Draco, who are you talking to?' Asked Narcissa. 'Oh, hello Severus. What a nice surprise to see you and your family and nieces friends.' She wasn't happy to she any of them.

'It's good to see the two of you as well.' Replied Severus. 'Did you have a holiday in Mexico.'

'Yes, it was quite relaxing. What about you? Have you had a good holiday?'

'The best one yet.' Smiled Severus. 'You and Draco shopping for school supplies?'

'Don't pretend as though you don't know Severus, what else would we be here for?' She asked. 'When are you and Aurora getting married?'

'Next summer holidays,' answered Aurora. She really hated Narcissa Malfoy, but if Severus could tolerate her then see could too.

'How lovely.' She said.

Madam Malkin, sensing the awkwardness that began to spread throughout the room, decided to continue to work on Draco's robe.

'_I think this sleeve could come up a little bit more, dear, let me just…'_

'_Ouch!' Bellowed _Draco_, slapping her hand away, 'watch where you're putting your pins, woman! Mother, _lets just go home.'He added, taking off the robe and giving it to Madam Malkin.

'_Your right, Draco,' said Narcissa, with a contemptuous glance at Hermione. '_Besides_, now that I know the kind of scum that shops here, _I don't think I want you to wear robes from here anymore.' Draco flinched as though he had been hit, walking towards the door with his mother, determined not to look at his friends or godfather. 'Good day, Severus.'

'Good day, Narcissa. Draco, I shall see you at Hogwarts.'

Draco did not reply or even look at his godfather. He just left as though no one was there.

'What was that all about?' Hermione asked in a small voice. 'Why was Draco acting so…cold and mean?'

'I don't know, Hermione.' Harri was almost in tears. It pained her to see Draco act that way. Noticing her distress, Severus wrapped his arms protectively around her.

An hour later, they left Madam Malkin's and met up with the others.

'_Everyone all right?' Said Mrs Weasley. 'Got your robes? Right then, we can pop in at the apothecary and Eeylops on the way to Fred and George's – stick close, now…_Harri, what's wrong dear?' Asked a startled Mrs Weasley, catching sight of Harri's tear stained face.

'We ran into the Malfoy's at Madam Malkin's,' said Aurora and she quickly explained what happened.

'I wouldn't worry about it, dear.' Mrs Weasley said kindly. 'He probably just woke up on the wrong side of the bed.'

'Yeah, maybe.' Harri didn't believe that it was that simple. Whatever was bothering him on her birthday was evidently still bothering him. She knew Draco well enough to know this…or at least she thought she did.

Once they had all bought the necessary potion ingredients and anything that they wanted from Eeylops Owl Emporium, they headed to _Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, the joke shop run by Fred and George._

'_We really haven't got to long,' Mrs Weasley said_, when they arrived outside the joke shop_. 'So we'll just have a quick look around and then _we're leaving.'

Ron, Hermione and Ginny practically ran into the shop, Harri, however, walked slowly in, mind still fixed on Draco, otherwise she would have ran in as well.

The shop _was packed with customers_ and items. There were _boxes piled to the ceiling, bins full of trick wands, boxes of quills, which came Self-Inking, Sell-Checking and Smart-Answer varieties._

_A space cleared in the crowd and _Harri made her _towards the counter, where Hermione had managed to squeeze through _the crowd_ and was reading the information on the back of a box bearing a highly coloured picture of a handsome youth and a swooning girl who were standing on the deck of a pirate ship._

'_One simple incantation and you will enter a top-quality, highly realistic thirty-minute daydream, easy to fit into the average school lesson and virtually undetectable (side-effects include vacant expression and minor drooling). Not for sale to under-sixteens.__ You know,' said Hermione, looking up at _Harri_, 'that really is extraordinary magic!'_

'_For that Hermione,' said a voice behind them, 'you can have one for free.'_

_A beaming Fred stood before them, wearing a set of magenta robes that clashed magnificently with his flaming hair._

'_How are you, _Harri_?' They shook hands. _'You look a little bit upset. You not still worried about Draco's behaviour from the other night, are you?'

'No, more worried about his behaviour in Madam Malkin's.' Replied Harri. 'Him acting as though we didn't exist and he was acting like the arrogant, spoilt Draco Malfoy that we all knew and loved for four years of school.'

'Well then, how about I give you the grand tour, to get your mind off it for at least a while?'

'Sounds like a plan to me!' Harri smiled, following _Fred towards the back of the shop, where _she_ saw a stand of cards and rope tricks._

'_Muggle magic tricks!' Said Fred happily, pointing them out. 'For freaks like Dad, you know, who love Muggle stuff. It's not a big earner, but we do fairly steady business, they're great novelties…oh, here's George.'_

_Fred's twin shook _Harri's _hand energetically._

'_Giving _her_ the tour? Come through the back, _Harri_, that's where we're making the real money – __**pocket anything, you, and you'll pay in more than Galleons!**__' He added warningly to a small boy who hastily whipped his hand out of the tub labelled: __Edible Dark Marks – They'll Make Anybody Sick!_

_George pushed back a curtain beside that Muggle tricks and _Harri_ saw a darker, less crowded room. The packaging on the products lining these shelves was more subdued._

'_We've just developed this more serious line,' said Fred. 'Funny how it happened…'_

'_You wouldn't believe how many people, even people who work at the Ministry, can't do a decent Shield Charm,' said George. 'Course, they didn't have you teaching them, _Harri_,'_

'_That's right…well, we thought Shield Hats were a bit of a laugh. You know, challenge your mate to jinx you while wearing it and watch his face when the jinx just bounces off. But the Ministry bought five hundred for all its staff! And we're still getting massive orders!'_

'_So we've expanded into a range of Shield Cloaks, Shield Gloves…'_

'…_I mean, they wouldn't help much against the Unforgivable Curses, but for minor to moderate hexes or jinxes…'_

'_And then we thought we'd get into the whole area of Defence Against the Dark Arts, because it's such a money-spinner,' continued George enthusiastically. 'This is cool. Look, Instant Darkness Powder, we're importing it from Peru. Handy if you want to make a quick escape.'_

'_And our Decoy Dentonators are just walking off the shelves, look,' said Fred, pointing at a number of weird-looking black hooter-type objects that were indeed attempting to scurry out of sight. 'You just drop one surreptitiously and it'll run off and make a nice loud noise out of sight, giving you a diversion if you need one.'_

'_Handy,' said _Harri_, impressed._

'_Here,' said George, catching a couple and throwing them to _Harri_. _'Take anything that you want, free of charge…and don't give us any buts either,' he added, as Harri was about to open her mouth to argue. 'You gave us the money to start this up, so you can have anything you want for free, whenever you shop in here!' With that said, the twins excused themselves in order to help someone with a problem.

Harri walked over to Ron and Hermione, who were currently looking at the Skiving Snackboxes.

'Their stuff is really impressive isn't it?' Hermione said, looking up at Harri.

'Yeah, it is. It's quite…' Harri cut off looking out the window.

'Harri, what's wrong?' Asked Ron, as he and Hermione turned and looked out the window, wondering what had gotten Harri's sudden attention, and hey soon got their answer. _Draco was hurrying up the street alone. As he passed Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, he glanced over his shoulder. Seconds later, he moved beyond the scope of the window and they lost sight of him._

'_Wonder where his _mother_ is?' Said _Harri_, frowning._

'_Given her the slip by the looks of it,' said Ron._

'_Why, though?' Said Hermione._

Harri stared at the place Draco had been seconds before debating something over in her mind. Finally, she decided what she was going to do. Pulling out her Invisibility Cloak, she motioned for Ron and Hermione to join her under it. They both complied, even though Hermione was a little hesitant.

Squeezing their way through the store, nearly running into Severus and Aurora, they managed to get outside, unnoticed, and Draco had successfully disappeared. The trio mutely headed in the direction that Draco had been heading, hoping to catch sight of him, and it worked. They caught sight of him, just as he stopped at the entrance of Knockturn Alley, glanced around, then slipped down the Alley. The trio quickly hurried after him.

They followed Draco all the way to Borgin and Burkes. Looking through the window, they could see him talking to Mr Borgin.

'_If only we could hear what they are saying!'_ Whispered Hermione.

'_We can!' Said Ron excitedly. 'Hang on…'_ Out of his pocket, he pulled out some Extendable Ears.

'Brilliant Ron!' Said Hermione, as they all brought their heads together to listen to what they were saying.

'…_you know how to fix it?'_

'_Possibly,' said Borgin, in a tone that suggested he was unwilling to commit himself. 'I'll need to see it, though. Why don't you bring it into the shop?'_

'_I can't,' said _Draco_. 'It's got to stay put. I just need you to tell me how to do it.'_

_Borgin licked his lips nervously._

'_Well, without seeing it, I must say it will be a very difficult job, perhaps impossible. I couldn't guarantee anything.'_

'_No?' _Sneered Draco_. 'Perhaps this will make you more confident.'_ Draco showed Borgin something the others couldn't see. All they knew was whatever it was, it was scaring Borgin. _'Tell anyone,' _continued Draco, _'and there will be retribution. You know Fenrir Greyback? He's a family friend, he'll be dropping in from time to time to make sure you're giving the problem your full attention.'_

'_There will be no need for…'_

'_I'll decide that. Well, I'd better be off. And don't forget to keep __**that**__ one safe, I'll need it.'_

'_Perhaps you'd like to take it now?'_

'_No, of course I wouldn't, you stupid little man, how would I look carrying that down the street? Just don't sell it.'_

'_Of course not…sir.'_ Said Borgin, bowing to Draco the same way Harri had seen him bow to Lucius Malfoy, just before her second year when she hid in the cabinet.

'_Not a word to anyone, Borgin, and that includes my mother, understand?'_

'_Naturally, naturally,' murmured Borgin, bowing again._

Harri, Ron and Hermione watched as Draco stalked out of the shop and headed back to Diagon Alley. As soon as Draco was out of sight, Harri jumped out from underneath the Invisibility Cloak, startling Ron and Hermione and walked into Borgin and Burke's.

'What do you want?' Snapped Borgin, when Harri shut to door behind her.

'Looking at your wares, if that's all right with you,' Harri said coldly, 'and if you must know, I'm looking for a gift for my Uncle's birthday.'

Harri then turned her back on Borgin and began to browse for anything that would stand out if you were to carry it down the street, or that might have had a twin. But she was unsuccessful. So she threw caution to the winds, 'Is any of these items reserved for anyone?' She asked Borgin, who was watching her threw narrowed eyes.

'Why?' He asked suspiciously.

'If you must know, Draco Malfoy knows my Uncle and I just saw him leave the shop, which makes me wonder if he reserved anything.' Harri said, pretending to get annoyed.

'Who is your uncle?' Borgin asked suddenly.

'Which one?'

'The one you're buying the present for!'

'You wouldn't know him, but he is a close friend to the Dark Lord.' Harri said, looking at her nails.

Borgin paled. 'No, Mister Malfoy, didn't reserve anything.'

'Huh, well, doesn't matter anyway…my Uncle wouldn't like anything in here.' With that, Harri walked out of the shop, and slipped back under the Invisibility Cloak.

_'It was worth a try,' said Ron, winding up the Extendable Ears._

'Mmmm, I didn't even see anything in there that would look eccentric if you carried it down a street or anything that might have a twin.' Said Harri, before sighing. 'Come on, we better get back. The other are bound to have noticed our absences.'

Harri was right to, as soon as the trio had snuck back in and walked to a corner of the store and took the Cloak off, Mrs Weasley was upon them, asking them where they had been. Thankfully, she bought their story about being in the back room and that she mustn't of been looking hard enough.

Harri, Severus and Aurora said goodbye to the Weasleys and Hermione and headed back to Acacia. When Harri arrived home, she went outside and sat by one of the ponds on the grounds, thinking. Now, not only did she have the vision spinning around in her mind, but she had Draco's weird behaviour as well. Why has he started to act all arrogant and angry again? And what was the item he was after in Borgin and Burke's? On top of that, what did he show, Borgin to make him so scared? All these thoughts were jumping around in Harri's mind until it hit her. That way he looked nervous and…maybe guilty at her birthday, not catching her eye at Madam Malkin's, accusing Malkin of pinning him every time she touched the sleeve of one arm…Draco was now a Death Eater!

* * *

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	2. Back To Hogwarts

_Passages from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (some spelling/names/etc changed)_

_Writing from passages form Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Price (e.g. notes, letters, etc.)_

Writing (e.g. notes, letters, etc.)

**CHAPTER TWO: BACK TO HOGWARTS**

Harri went over it over and over again in her head trying to find some reasonable explanation for Draco's strange behaviour, but every time she came back to the same conclusion…that he had replaced his father as a Death Eater. However, she didn't have any proof that was set in stone, so a small part of her hoped that she was just overreacting and there was a valid reason for his behaviour. All she had to do was look for it.

In order to do this she went to the first person that she thought would know if Draco was a Death Eater…her grandfather. When she asked him he said that he hadn't heard of Draco becoming a Death Eater and told her that she was probably overreacting. Still not satisfied, Harri then decided to ask her Uncle. When she asked him he basically said the same thing as her grandfather, but she got the distinct feeling that he was hiding something from her. This called for desperate measures, she would have to go and see Voldemort.

Ever since the end of last year, there truce had remained strong, with Harri allowed to come and go from Voldemort's hideout to Acacia, not that she was entirely comfortable going there half the time. Anyway, if she was to solve this mystery, Voldemort was the one person who would know for sure, after all, he was the Dark Lord.

Harri gracefully stepped out of her bedroom fireplace at Voldemort's before grabbing a hooded cloak (she needed to keep her identity secret seeing as none of the Death Eaters know about her) and leaving for Voldemort's study. Upon arriving she could hear that he was inside for he was talking to his snake Nagini. Gathering her courage she knocked on the door.

'Enter,' came Voldemort's voice.

'Morning Uncle,' Harri said, slipping inside and taking off her hood. 'Did you have a nice trip?'

Voldemort had to travel to India, for reasons she did not know, but she had a good theory that it was to do with the war.

'Indeed it was a nice trip,' he said, offering the seat across from him on the opposite side of the desk. 'While I was there I picked you up a birthday present,' he added handing her a small box.

'Thank you Uncle.'

'Don't thank me until you see what it actually is,' he laughed.

Smiling, Harri opened the small box to reveal an Indian looking bracelet. It was gold with golden designs and patterns on the out side along with six big rubies and twelve small ones.

'It's beautiful, Uncle.'

'Well, it's not just there to look pretty. It has many protection charms embedded in the rubies, along with the general properties of the rubies themselves.' Said Voldemort.

'I'm afraid I don't know what you mean Uncle,' Harri said, putting the bracelet on.

'Did you know that the ancient druids, shamans and Hindus found many mystical properties of rubies? No, well, magical properties of the ruby include protection, power and wealth as well as warding off nightmares. This means that if you carry or wear a ruby, it will protect you from psychic and physical attacks. It also promotes clarity, wisdom and motivation. Plus, by sleeping with a ruby, the person in possession of it could encourage lucid dreaming.' Voldemort said, showing that he had a great deal of knowledge on the topic. 'I was going to get you a necklace but I knew that you would never take the pendant that young Draco Malfoy gave you off, so I settled for a bracelet instead.'

'What's wrong?' Voldemort asked when he noticed that Harri became sad at the mention of Draco.

'Uncle…is Draco a Death Eater now?' Harri asked looking her Uncle straight in the eye.

'No, I haven't marked him, and I'm not about to either. His too young to be a Death Eater and I have only been home a few hours so I wouldn't have been able to mark him either.' Voldemort answered.

'All right, I believe you.' Harri finally said.

Grandfather and Uncle Sev were right I am overreacting. Harri thought.

'Normally I would invite you to dinner, but seeing as I'm way behind in my paperwork, I'm afraid I will have to ask you to leave, my dear Harrietta.' Voldemort said sadly.

'That's all right, Uncle. I probably should go anyway and pack the rest of my belongings as I'm going back to Hogwarts tomorrow on the train like everyone else.' Harri replied, getting up.

'Then I wish you a safe and pleasant journey and a fabulous year.'

'Thank you, Uncle.'

* * *

September first had arrived and Harri was anxiously waiting for her Uncle Severus to hurry up so she could meet up with her friends on Platform Nine and Three Quarters. When Severus was finally ready, he Apparated her to the Platform before Apparating back to Acacia, to finish getting ready for this teaching year.

Harri soon found her friends talking standing with Mr and Mrs Weasley.

'Ron! Hermione! Ginny!' Harri called walking over to them.

'Hey Harri! Love the bracelet, but since when do you wear jewellery, besides the Pendant Draco gave you of course?' Said Hermione.

'This is actually a protective piece of jewellery that my Uncle bought for my birthday when he was in India.' Harri said, now giving Mrs Weasley a hug.

'I thought you said that Sev was in Japan, and I don't recall seeing it on you at your birthday or at Diagon Alley.' Said Ron.

'That's because that wasn't the uncle I was talking about.' Mr Weasley paused in the hug he was giving her.

'What do you mean "that's not the uncle you were talking about"? You only have the two un-cles… are you telling me that it was your dark uncle?' Ginny said. 'Harri, is it really a good idea to wear something he has given you?'

'Relax, I know what I'm doing.' Harri said. 'Shall we find a compartment, before the two of you go and do your prefects duties?' Harry added quickly, when Hermione showed signs of wanting to argue with her.

'Um, no we'll meet you later.' Answered Ron, while Ginny said, 'I'm off to meet Dean.'

'Okay, I'll see you guys later then,' Harri smiled, hopping on the train to find an empty compartment, while trying to dodge all the people staring at her and boys trying to ask her out.

This one guy wouldn't take the hint and she would have cursed him had it not been for the person who called at to her from behind.

'_Hi, Harri!' said a familiar voice from behind her. _

'_Neville!' said Harri in relief, turning to see a round-faced boy struggling toward her. _

'Hello, Harri,' said a girl with long hair and large misty eyes, who was just behind Neville.

'_Luna, hi, how are you?'_

'_Very well, thank you,' said Luna. She was clutching a magazine to her chest; large letters on the front announced that there was a pair of free Spectrespecs inside. _

'_Quibbler still going strong, then?' asked Harri, who felt a certain fondness for the magazine, having given it an exclusive interview the previous year. _

'_Oh yes, circulation's well up,' said Luna happily. _

'Come on, _let's find seats,_ before I curse one of these idiots_' said Harri_ glaring at the boy she was about to curse. _The three of them set off along the train through hordes of silently staring students. At last they found an empty compartment, and Harri hurried inside gratefully. _

'_They're even staring at us!' said Neville, indicating _to_ himself and Luna. 'Because we're with you!' _

'No, t_hey're staring at you because you were at the Ministry too,' said Harri, 'Our little adventure there was all over the Daily Prophet, you must've seen it.'_

'_Yes, I thought Gran would be angry about all the publicity,' said Neville, 'but she was really pleased. Says I'm starting to live up to my dad at long last. She bought me a new wand, look!' _He said pulling out and showing Harri his new wand.

'_Cherry and unicorn hair,' he said proudly. 'We think it was one of the last Ollivander ever sold, he vanished next day … oi, come back here, Trevor!' _Neville added as _he dived under the seat to retrieve his toad as it made one of its frequent bids for freedom._

'_Are we still doing D.A. meetings this year, Harri?' asked Luna, who was detaching a pair of psychedelic spectacles from the middle of The Quibbler. _

'_No point now we've got rid of Umbridge, is there?' said Harry, sitting down. _'Besides, we'll be having a really good Defence teacher this year.'

'Really, who?' Asked _Neville, bumping his head against the seat as he emerged from under it. _

'I'm not saying,' Harri said in a sing-along voice.

'It's to bad though,' Neville said looking_ most disappointed. 'I liked the D.A.! I learned loads with you!'_

'_I enjoyed the meetings too,' said Luna serenely. 'It was like having friends.'_

_This was one of those uncomfortable things Luna often said and which made Harri feel a squirming mixture of pity and embarrassment. Before she could respond, however, there was a disturbance outside their compartment door; a group of fourth-year girls was whispering and giggling together on the other side of the glass. _

'_You ask her!' _

'_No, you!' _

Harri got up and opened the compartment door and stared down at them, and frightening them with her sudden appearance.

'Will you get it over and done with please cause you are disturbing everyone!' Harri said.

_A bold-looking girl with large dark eyes, a prominent chin, and long black hair _spoke to her, while the others remained silent.

'_Hi, Harry, I'm Romilda, Romilda Vane,' she said loudly and confidently. "Why don't you join us in our compartment? You don't have to sit with them, she added in a stage whisper, indicating Neville's bottom, which was sticking out from under the seat again as he groped around for Trevor, and Luna, who was now wearing her free Spectrespecs, which gave her the look of a demented, multi-colour owl. _

'_They're friends of mine,'" said Harri coldly._ 'And unless you have something else to say I suggest that you go back to your own compartment, now!'

'Oh,' said the girl, looking very surprised. 'Oh. Okay.'

Then her and her friends quickly hurried off down the train, knowing not to mess with Harri, especially with the look she was giving them.

'_People expect you to have cooler friends than us,' said Luna, once again displaying her knack for embarrassing honesty. _

'_You are cool," said Harri, _closing the compartment door_. "None of them was at the Ministry. They didn't fight with me. _Besides, define the word "cool"! Everyone is "cool" in their own way.'

'_That's a very nice thing to say,' beamed Luna. Then she pushed her Spectrespecs farther up her nose and settled down to read The Quibbler. _

'_We didn't face him, though,' said Neville, emerging from under the seat with fluff and dust in his hair and a resigned-looking Trevor in his hand. 'You did. You should hear my gran talk about you. "That Harrietta Dumbledore's got more backbone than the whole Ministry of Magic put together!" She'd give anything to have you as a granddaughter!'_

_Harri laughed uncomfortably and changed the subject to OWL results as soon as she could. Neville recited his grades and _asked Harri _whether he would be allowed to take a Transfiguration NEWT, with only an "Acceptable"._

'No, I don't think you would be able to Neville,' Harri said gently, 'but why do you want to do Transfiguration? I thought you hated it?'

'I do, but Gran thinks it will be a good subject to do for my future.'

'In that case, talk to my grandmother about it,' Harri advised, before moving into a more comfortable position, but that's when it came. The vision of the three children again by the lake, a vision that was driving her insane.

'_You all right, Harri? You look funny,' said Neville. _

_Harri started. 'Sorry … I …' _

'_Wrackspurt got you?' asked Luna sympathetically, peering at Harri through her enormous coloured spectacles. _

'_I… what?' _

'_A Wrackspurt... They're invisible. They float in through your ears and make your brain go fuzzy,' she said. 'I thought I felt one zooming around in here.'_

_She flapped her hands at thin air, as though beating off large invisible moths. Harri and Neville caught each other's eyes and_ Neville_ hastily began _a conversation on_ Quidditch. _

_The weather beyond the train windows was as patchy as it had been all summer; they passed through stretches of the chilling mist, then out into weak, clear sunlight. It was during one of the clear spells, when the sun was visible almost directly overhead, that Ron and Hermione entered the compartment at last. _

'_Wish the lunch trolley would hurry up, I'm starving,' said Ron longingly, slumping into the seat beside Harri and rubbing his stomach_, while Harri muttered under her breath, 'yeah, you didn't have to be a Seer to see that coming.'

'_Hi, Neville. Hi, Luna. Guess what?' he added, turning to Harri. 'Draco' s not doing his prefect duty. He's just sitting in his compartment with _some_ other Slytherins, we saw him when we passed.' _

Harri nearly fell off the seat. Why would Draco abandon his prefect duties? And why was he sitting with the Slytherins instead of them? From what she witnessed last year, none of them liked each other.

'_What did he do when he saw you?'_ Harri asked, mouth dry.

'Nothing. He took one look at us before looking out the window while the other Slytherins did the usual taunts and gestures. It's not like him, is it?'

'No, it isn't_,' said Harri, mind was racing. _'Something happened, something happened when he went home for the summer.'

Before anyone could say anything else_ the compartment door slid open again and a breathless third-year girl stepped inside. _

'_I'm supposed to deliver these to Neville Longbottom and Harrietta D-Dumbledore," she faltered, as her eyes met Harri's and she turned scarlet _(Harri was sick of all these fans or whatever you wanted to call them). The girl_ was holding out two scrolls of parchment tied with violet ribbon. Perplexed, Harri and Neville took the scroll addressed to each of them and the girl stumbled back out of the compartment. _

'What is it?' Ron demanded, as Harri unrolled hers.

'_An invitation,' said Harri,_ 'from Professor Slughorn. He wants us to join him for lunch in compartment C.'

'_But what does he want me for?' asked Neville nervously, as though he was expecting detention. _

'I have a hunch_,' said Harri, _but she didn't elaborate when the others asked her what he hunch was_. 'Listen,' she added, seized by a sudden brain wave, 'let's go under the Invisibility Cloak, then we might get a good look at Draco on the way, see _if he is all right.'

_This idea, however, came to nothing: The corridors, which were packed with people on the lookout for the lunch trolley, were impossible to negotiate while wearing the cloak. Harri stowed it regretfully back in her bag, reflecting that it would have been nice to wear it just to avoid all the staring, which seemed to have increased in intensity even since she had last walked down the train._ She was now starting to regret coming on the train for_ every now and then, students would hurtle out of their compartments to get a better look at her._

_When they reached compartment C, they saw at once that they were not Slughorn's only invitees, although judging by the enthusiasm of Slughorn's welcome; Harri was the most warmly anticipated. _

'_Harri, m'girl!' said Slughorn, jumping up at the sight of her so that his great velvet-covered belly seemed to fill all the remaining space in the compartment. His shiny baldhead and great silvery moustache gleamed as brightly in the sunlight as the golden buttons on his waistcoat. 'Good to see you, good to see you! And you must be Mr. Longbottom!' _

_Neville nodded, looking scared. At a gesture from Slughorn, they sat down opposite each other in the only two empty seats, which were nearest the door. Harri glanced around at their fellow guests. He recognized Blaise Zabini; two seventh-year boys Harri did not know and, squashed in the corner beside Slughorn and looking as though she was not entirely sure how she had got there, Ginny. _

'_Now, do you know everyone?' Slughorn asked Harri and Neville. 'Blaise Zabini is in your year, of course –'_

_Blaise did not make any sign of recognition or greeting, nor did Harri or Neville._ Neville didn't react cause he was the main target for most Slytherins and he didn't want to anger Blaise, and Harri didn't respond cause of the way he treated Draco last year.

'_This is Cormac McLaggen; perhaps you've come across each other…? No?'_

_McLaggen, a large, wiry-haired youth, raised a hand, and Harri and Neville nodded back at him. _

'… _and this is Marcus Belby, I don't know whether …?' _

_Belby, who was thin and nervous-looking, gave a strained smile. _

'… _and this charming young lady tells me she knows you!' Slughorn finished. _

_Ginny grimaced at Harri and Neville from behind Slughorn's back. _

'_Well now, this is most pleasant,' said Slughorn cosily. _

Harri thought that it was anything but pleasant. Blaise kept glaring at her, for reasons unknown, while the atmosphere in the room felt tense.

'_A chance to get to know you all a little better._' Slughorn continued_. 'Here, take a napkin. I've packed my own lunch; the trolley, as I remember it, is heavy on liquorice wands, and a poor old man's digestive system isn't quite up to such things... Pheasant, Belby?" _

_Belby started and accepted what looked like half a cold pheasant. _

'_I was just telling young Marcus here that I had the pleasure of teaching his Uncle Damocles,' Slughorn told Harri and Neville, now passing around a basket of rolls. _

'_Outstanding wizard, outstanding, and his Order of Merlin most well deserved. Do you see much of your uncle, Marcus?' _

_Unfortunately, Belby had just taken a large mouthful of pheasant; in his haste to answer Slughorn he swallowed too fast, turned purple, and began to choke. _

'_Anapneo,' said Slughorn calmly, pointing his wand at Belby, whose airway seemed to clear at once. _

'_Not... not much of him, no,' gasped Belby, his eyes streaming. _

'_Well, of course, I daresay he's busy,' said Slughorn, looking questioningly at Belby. 'I doubt he invented the Wolfsbane Potion without considerable hard work!'_

'_I suppose...' said Belby, who seemed afraid to take another bite of pheasant until he was sure that Slughorn had finished with him. 'Er... he and my dad don't get on very well, you see, so I don't really know much about...' _

_His voice tailed away as Slughorn gave him a cold smile and turned to McLaggen instead._ Harry still didn't know if she liked Slughorn or not. What kind of teacher judges a student on their family and how famous and well know they are?

'_Now, you, Cormac,' said Slughorn, 'I happen to know you see a lot of your Uncle Tiberius, because he has a rather splendid picture of the two of you hunting nogtails in, I think, Norfolk?'_

'_Oh, yeah, that was fun, that was,' said McLaggen. 'We went with Bertie Higgs and Rufus Scrimgeour; this was before he became Minister, obviously …'_

As soon as McLaggen opened his mouth, Harri knew that she did not like him. He seemed full of himself, arrogant…basically the same way that Draco use to be, minus the House hating.

'_Ah, you know Bertie and Rufus too?' beamed Slughorn, now offering around a small tray of pies; somehow, Belby was missed out. 'Now tell me...'_

_It was as Harri had suspected. Everyone here seemed to have been invited because they were connected to somebody well known or influential… everyone except Ginny. Blaise, who was interrogated after McLaggen, turned out to have a famously beautiful witch for a mother (from what Harri could make out, she had been married seven times, each of her husbands dying mysteriously and leaving her mounds of gold_, which disgusted her_). _

_It was Neville's turn next: This was a very uncomfortable ten minutes, for Neville's parents, well-known Aurors, had been tortured into insanity by Bellatrix Lestrange and a couple of Death Eater cronies. At the end of Neville's interview, Harri had the impression that Slughorn was reserving judgment on Neville, yet to see whether he had any of his parents' flair._ Harri wanted nothing better than to have a go at Slughorn, couldn't he see how hard it was for Neville to talk about what happened with his parents?

'_And now,' said Slughorn, shifting massively in his seat with the air of a compere introducing his star act. 'Harrietta Dumbledore! Where to begin? I feel I barely scratched the surface when we met over the summer!" He contemplated Harri for a moment as though she was a particularly large and succulent piece of pheasant, then said, '"The Chosen One," they're calling you now!' _

_Harri said nothing. Belby, McLaggen, and Blaise were all staring at her. _

'_Of course,' said Slughorn, watching Harri closely, 'there have been rumours for years... I remember when … well … after that terrible night … Lily … James … and you survived … and the word was that you must have powers beyond the ordinary …' _

_Blaise gave a tiny little cough that was clearly supposed to indicate amused scepticism. _

_An angry voice burst out from behind Slughorn. _

'_Yeah, Zabini, because you're so talented... at posing...'_

'_Oh dear!' chuckled Slughorn comfortably, looking around at Ginny, who was glaring at Zabini around Slughorn's great belly. 'You want to be careful, Blaise! I saw this young lady perform the most marvellous Bat-Bogey Hex as I was passing her carriage! I wouldn't cross her!'_

_Blaise merely looked contemptuous. _

'_Anyway," said Slughorn, turning back to Harry. 'Such rumours this summer. Of course, one doesn't know what to believe, the Prophet has been known to print inaccuracies, make mistakes … but there seems little doubt, given the number of witnesses, that there was quite a disturbance at the Ministry and that you were there in the thick of it all!' _

_Harri, who could not see any way out of this without flatly lying, nodded but still said nothing. Slughorn beamed at her. _

'_So modest, so modest, no wonder Dumbledore is so _proud to call you his granddaughter_ … you were there, then? But the rest of the stories … so sensational, of course, one doesn't know quite what to believe … this fabled prophecy, for instance …' _

'_We never heard a prophecy,' said Neville, turning geranium pink as he said it. _

'_That's right,' said Ginny staunchly. 'Neville and I were both there too, and all this "Chosen One" rubbish is just the Prophet making things up as usual.' _

'_You were both there too, were you?' said Slughorn with great interest, looking from Ginny to Neville, but both of them sat clam-like before his encouraging smile. _

'_Yes... well... it is true that the Prophet often exaggerates, of course...' Slughorn said sounding a little disappointed. 'I remember dear Gwenog telling me (Gwenog Jones, I mean, of course, Captain of the Holyhead Harpies) …'_

_He meandered off into a long-winded reminiscence, but Harri had the distinct impression that Slughorn had not finished with her, and that he had not been convinced by Neville and Ginny. _However, Harri was grateful to the both of them for interrupting Slughorn's interrogation.

_The afternoon wore on with more anecdotes about illustrious wizards Slughorn had taught, all of whom had been delighted to join what he called the "Slug Club" at Hogwarts. _

_Harri could not wait to leave, but couldn't see how to do so politely _(her grandparents would be disappointed in her if she left rudely)_. Finally the train emerged from yet another long misty stretch into a red sunset, and Slughorn looked around, blinking in the twilight. _

'_Good gracious, it's getting dark already! I didn't notice that they'd lit the lamps! You'd better go and change into your robes, all of you. McLaggen, you must drop by and borrow that book on nogtails. Harri, Blaise … any time you're passing. Same goes for you, miss,' he twinkled at Ginny. 'Well, off you go, off you go!' _

_As he pushed past Harri into the darkening corridor, Blaise shot her a filthy look that Harri returned with interest. Harri, Ginny, and Neville followed Blaise back along the train. _

'_I'm glad that's over,' muttered Neville. 'Strange man, isn't he?' _

'Strange, try annoying_,' said Harri, her eyes on Blaise. 'How come you ended up in there, Ginny?'_

'_He saw me hex Zacharias Smith,' said Ginny. 'You remember that idiot from Hufflepuff who was in the D.A.? He kept on and on asking about what happened at the Ministry and in the end he annoyed me so much I hexed him.'_

'Good! I've been wanting to do that for a while, but if I didn't get to hex him at least someone I know and trust got to, but that doesn't explain how you ended up in that boring…whatever you want to call it.'

'Well, _when Slughorn came in I thought I was going to got detention, but he just thought it was a really good hex and invited me to lunch! Mad, eh?'_

'At least it is a _better reason for inviting someone than because their mother's famous,' said Harri, scowling at the back of Blaise's head, 'or because their uncle…' _

Harri_ broke off _when a brilliant_ idea occurred to her, a reckless but potentially wonderful idea. In a minute's time, Blaise was going to re-enter the Slytherin sixth-year compartment and Draco would be sitting there, thinking himself unheard by anybody except fellow Slytherins. If Harri could only enter, unseen, behind him, _she might be able to get some idea of why Draco has been acting so weird, even if they had nearly arrived at Hogsmeade Station.

'_I'll see you two later,' _Harri whispered to Ginny and Neville, while_ pulling out her Invisibility Cloak and flinging it over herself. _

'_But what're you … ?' asked Neville. _

'_Later!' whispered Harri, darting after Blaise as quietly as possible, though the rattling of the train made such caution almost pointless. _

_The corridors were almost completely empty now. Nearly everyone had returned to their carriages to change into their school robes and pack up their possessions. _

Due to Harri's natural ability of sneaking, she was able to slip in the compartment; the moment Blaise opened the door, without alerting anyone of her presences. However before Blaise sat down, Harri quickly climbed into the luggage rack, I order to remain unnoticed.

'_So, Blaise,' said Draco, 'what did Slughorn want?'_

'_Just trying to make up to well-connected people,' said Zabini, 'not that he managed to find many.' _

'_Who else had he invited?'_ Draco asked conversationally_. _

'_McLaggen from Gryffindor,' said Blaise. _

'_Oh yeah, his uncle's big in the Ministry,' said Draco. _

'… _someone else called Belby, from Ravenclaw …'_

'_Not him, he's a prat!' said Pansy. _

'… _and Longbottom, __**Dumbledore**__, and that Weasley girl,' finished Blaise. _

'_He invited Longbottom?' _Laughed Pansy. Draco's face remained expressionless.

'_Well, I assume so, as Longbottom was there,' said Blaise indifferently. _

'Still, w_hat's Longbottom got to interest Slughorn?'_

_Blaise shrugged. _

'_Dumbledore, precious Harrietta Dumbledore! Obviously he wanted a look at "the Chosen One,"' sneered _Pansy. At the mention of Harri's name, Draco cringed as though he was in pain, but nobody noticed for Pansy was now harping on about Ginny._ 'But that Weasley girl! What's so special about her?'_

'For the same reason many boys would drool over Harri, regardless of here famous status,' Draco answered softly. 'She beautiful, smart and powerful.'

'Draco's right,' said Nott, before smirking at Blaise. '_Even you think she's good-looking, don't you, Blaise, and we all know how hard you are to please!'_

'I wouldn't touch a filthy little blood traitor like her whatever she looked like,' said Blaise coldly.

'_I pity Slughorn's taste. Maybe he's going a bit senile.' _Said Pansy, looking at her fingernails. '_Shame, my father always said he was a good wizard in his day. My father used to be a bit of a favourite of his. Slughorn probably hasn't heard I'm on the train, or…' _

'_I wouldn't bank on an invitation,' said Blaise, interrupting her. 'He asked me about Nott's father when I first arrived. They used to be old friends, apparently, but when he heard he'd been caught at the Ministry he didn't look happy, and Nott didn't get an invitation, did he? 1 don't think Slughorn's interested in Death Eaters.' _

Pansy_ looked angry, but forced out a singularly humourless laugh. _

'_Well, who cares what he's interested in? What is he, when you come down to it? Just some stupid teacher.' _Pansy_ yawned ostentatiously. _

'Give it a rest Pansy,' Draco said rubbing the bridge of his nose.

'Don't you even have the slightest opinion about the teacher that will probably be teaching us for this year and the next?' Asked Blaise.

'No, besides I don't even know if I'll _be at Hogwarts next year, _so why would _it matter to me if some fat old has-been likes me or not?'_

Harri nearly fell out of the luggage rake when Draco said that. Not go to Hogwarts next year? What did he mean by that? Why didn't he tell her? No, scratch that, why was he sitting here telling _them_ about it instead of her and their other friends? Did he make up with the Slytherins during the holidays, or was he morphing back into the old Draco?

'_What do you mean, you might not be at Hogwarts next year?' said Pansy _voicing Harri's question_._

Draco only shrugged, not answering. He didn't even answer them when they begged him. Yes, I know, it's hard to believe that a Slytherin would ever beg, unless it was something to do with Voldemort.

'_I can see Hogwarts,' said Draco, _interrupting the others as he_ pointed out of the blackened window. 'We'd better get our robes on.'_

Harri was so busy staring at Draco, that she did not notice Goyle reaching up for his trunk; as he swung it down, it hit Harri hard on the side of the head. She let out an involuntary gasp of pain, and Draco looked up at the luggage rack, frowning.

_Harri was not afraid of Draco_ (why would she, seeing that he was her boyfriend),_ but she_ _still did not much like the idea of being discovered hiding under her Invisibility Cloak by a group of unfriendly Slytherins._ She knew that she could take them on if she was discovered, seeing as she had more skill then them and she also had the bracelet that Voldemort gave her to protect her, but she didn't want to resort to fighting if she could avoid it.

_Eyes still watering and head still throbbing, she _watched as Draco shrugged and turned back to his trunk, _deciding that he had imagined the noise_ (that least that's what Harri thought)_; pulling on his robes like the others, locking his trunk, and as the train slowed to a jerky crawl, fastening a thick new travelling cloak round his neck. _

_At last, with a final lurch, the train came to a complete halt. Goyle threw the door open and muscled his way out into a crowd of second years, punching them aside; Crabbe and Blaise followed. _

'_You go on,' Draco told Pansy, who was waiting for him with her hand held out as though hoping he would hold it. 'I just want to check something.' _

_Pansy left. Now Harri and Draco were alone in the compartment. People were filing past, descending onto the dark platform. Draco moved over to the compartment door and let down the blinds, so that people in the corridor beyond could not peer in. _

Harri was deciding whether to reveal herself or not when Draco sighed, 'you can reveal yourself now Harri. I know that you are hiding in the luggage rack.

'How did you know it was me?' Harri asked, climbing back down.

Draco only shrugged. He seemed to be doing that a lot.

'A better question would be, why were you spying on me?' Draco said, looking her in the eye.

Harri knew that it was pointless to deny that she was spying on him.

'I was worried about you! Ever since by birthday you have been acting strangely every time I see you. It's as thought you have been avoiding me, Draco!'

'I haven't been avoiding you,' Draco answered a little to quickly.

'Huh, then would you care to explain the Diagon Alley incident?' Harri said, crossing her arms, waiting for an answer.

'I wasn't avoiding you, I just didn't feel well that day.'

'Really? Would that of had anything to do with your left arm? Is that why you were sick?'

Draco paled, and Harri knew that his behaviour definitely had something to do with his left arm, but what?

'It's as I said back at Madam Malkin's, she was sticking the pins into my skin.'

'You know, I have a hard time believing that cause those pins didn't even touch you, and don't bother denying it.' Harri snapped, before taking a gentler tone. 'Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you but please, tell me what is wrong so I can help you!'

'You can't help me Harri, so just forget about it,' Draco said after a moment's hesitation. 'Come on, we should probably head up to the castle.' He added, taking her hand and leading her off the train.

Harri and Draco walked over to the last Thestral-drawn carriage, and clambered in with a few seventh year Ravenclaws, and that's when the rumour of Draco and Harri having relationship issues started.

* * *

When Harri and Draco arrived at the Great Hall, they both went their separate ways, and many eyes watched this happen, including Harri's family.

'What happened Harri?' Hermione said, worried about her friends' behaviour.

'He still won't tell me what's wrong. However, what I do know is that it has something to do with his left arm…but what?' Harri said, subconsciously glancing over to the Slytherin table.

'I don't know Harri,' Hermione said sadly, while the others looked just as blank.

Before they could say anything else, Minerva walked in with the new first year students ready to be sorted into their Houses. Harri barely listened to the Sorting Hat's song and warning, and she didn't even pay attention when the sorting took place. All she could think about was Draco and his odd behaviour. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't get it off her mind. Maybe it had something to do with his father being in Azkaban? Yeah, that was probably it…no… it could be that! Lucius Malfoy was in Azkaban before they went on holidays, and Draco was all right then. Maybe she just wasn't meant to know yet. Maybe fate was making sure she couldn't interfere with its plans, whatever they were.

'Harri? Earth to Harrietta?' Came Hermione's voice.

'Sorry, what was that Hermione?' Asked Harri.

'I said, _what did Professor Slughorn want?' Hermione _repeated_. _

'To know what really happened at the Ministry.' said Harri.

'_Him and everyone else here,' sniffed Hermione. 'People were interrogating us about it on the train, weren't they, Ron?'_

'_Yeah,' said Ron. 'All wanting to know if you really are "the Chosen One" —' _

'_There has been much talk on that very subject even amongst the ghosts,' interrupted Nearly Headless Nick, inclining his barely connected head toward Harry so that it wobbled dangerously on its ruff_, as he came floating over_. 'I am considered something of a Dumbledore authority; it is widely known that we are friendly. I have assured the spirit community that I will not pester you for information, however. "Harrietta Dumbledore knows that she can confide in me with complete confidence," I told them. "I would rather die than betray her trust."' _

'Thanks Nick,' Harri said quietly, but it was drowned out as Ron spoke at the same time;

'_That's not saying much, seeing as you're already dead,' Ron observed. _

'_Once again, you show all the sensitivity of a blunt axe,' said Nearly Headless Nick in affronted tones, and he rose into the air and glided back toward the far end of the Gryffindor table._

'Nice one, Ronald,' Hermione scolded while Ginny and Harri glared.

The rest of dinner went smoothly as did dessert.

When the desserts disappeared, Albus got to his feet to make his start of term speech, and _the talk and laughter echoing around the Hall died away almost instantly. _

'_The very best of evenings to you!' he said, smiling broadly, his arms opened wide as though to embrace the whole room. _

'_What happened to his hand?' gasped Hermione. _

Obviously she didn't see it at my birthday,' Harri thought mildly, as other people began to notice his hand and begin to whisper madly to each other.

'No idea. He won't tell any of us,' Harri told the others quickly.

_Albus, interpreting the whispers correctly, merely smiled and shook his purple-and-gold sleeve over his injury. _

'_Nothing to worry about,' he said airily. 'Now ... to our new students, welcome, to our old students, welcome back! Another year full of magical education awaits you …" _

'_His hand was like that when I saw him _at your birthday, wasn't it Harri?' Asked Luna, who had taken to sitting with Harri and the others at the Gryffindor Table.

'But if it was like it back then, wouldn't he'd have cured it by now... or Madam Pomfrey would've done.' Asked Neville.

'_It looks as if it's died,' said Hermione, with a nauseated expression. 'But there are some injuries you can't cure... old curses…and there are poisons without antidotes. . . .'_

'…_and Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has asked me to say that there is a blanket ban on any joke items bought at the shop called Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. Those wishing to play for their House Quidditch teams should give their names to their Heads of House as usual. We are also looking for new Quidditch commentators, who should do likewise. _

'_We are pleased to welcome a new member of staff this year, Professor Slughorn —' _

_Slughorn stood up, his baldhead gleaming in the candlelight, his big waistcoated belly casting the table into shadow _

'— _is a former colleague of mine who has agreed to resume his old post of Potions master.'_

'_Potions?'_

'_Potions?'_

_The word echoed all over the Hall as people wondered wheel they had heard right. _

'_Potions?' said Neville, Ginny, Ron and Hermione together, turning to stare Harri. 'But _what will Sev be doing –'

'_Professor Snape, meanwhile,' said Albus, raising voice so that it carried over all the muttering, 'will be taking the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.'_

_Severus, who was sitting on Dumbledore's right, did not stand up his mention of his name; he _just nodded in_ acknowledgment of the applause._

'Why did you tell us?' Asked Ginny.

'Uncle Sev wanted it to be a surprise,' replied Harri. 'He wasn't even going to tell me. I only found out cause Uncle Sev didn't realise that I was in the room when he told Aurora.'

_Albus cleared his throat. Harri, Ron, and Hermione were not the only ones who had been talking; the whole Hall had erupted in a buzz of conversation at the news. Seemingly oblivious to the sensational nature of the news he had just imparted, Albus said nothing more about staff appointments, but waited a few seconds to ensure that the silence was absolute before continuing._

'Now, as everybody in this Hall knows, Lord Voldemort and his followers are once more at large and gaining in strength.' The silence seemed to tauten and strain as Albus spoke. 'I cannot emphasize strongly enough how dangerous the present situation is, and how much care each of us at Hogwarts must take to ensure that we remain safe. The castle's magical fortifications have been strengthened over the summer, we are protected in new and more powerful ways, but we must still guard scrupulously against carelessness on the part of any student or member of staff. I urge you, therefore, to abide by any security restrictions that you teachers might impose upon you, however irksome you might find them — in particular, the rule that you are not to be out of after hours. I implore you, should you notice anything strange or suspicious within or outside the castle, to report it to a member of staff immediately. I trust you to conduct yourselves, always, with the utmost regard for your own and others' safety.'

_Albus' blue eyes swept over the students before he smiled once more. _

'_But now, your beds await, as warm and comfortable as you could possibly wish, and I know that your top priority is to be well rested for your lessons tomorrow. Let us therefore say good night. Pip pip!'_

With the usual deafening scraping noise, the benches moved back and the hundreds of students began to file out of the Great Hall toward their dormitories. Harri, who was in no hurry at all to leave with the gawping crowd lagged behind, pretending to retie the lace on her trainer. Hermione had darted ahead to fulfil her prefect's duty of shepherding the first years, but Ron remained with Harri.

'I wish that they would all stop staring at me,' signed Harri, as the final students were leaving.

'One day they'll stop,' came a voice from behind them.

'Then I look forward to that day,' Harry relied, turning around to greet Hagrid. 'I noticed that you were late arriving Hagrid, how come?'

'_I was with Grawp,' said Hagrid happily. 'Los' track o' the time. He's got a new home up in the mountains now, Dumbledore fixed it — nice big cave. He's much happier than he was in the forest. We were havin' a good chat.'_

'Really?' said Harri, the last time she had met Hagrid's half-brother, a vicious giant with a talent for ripping up trees by the roots, his vocabulary had comprised five words, two of which he was unable to pronounce properly.

'Oh yeah, he's really come on,' said Hagrid proudly. 'Yeh'll be amazed. I'm thinkin' o' trainin' him up as me assistant.'

_Ron snorted loudly, but managed to pass it off as a violent sneeze. _

'Anyway, I'll see yeh tomorrow, firs' lesson's straight after lunch. Come early an' yeh can say hello ter Buckbeak!'

The day Sirius was freed of all charges, he had started up another case to free Buckbeak and it turned out to be a success. After that, Sirius had given him to Hagrid after that, knowing that Buckbeak would rather be out in the open at Hogwarts than locked in his mother's bedroom.

_Raising an arm in cheery farewell, Hagrid headed out of the doors into the darkness. _

_Harri and Ron looked at each other. Harri could tell that Ron was experiencing the same sinking feeling _that she was_. _

'_You're not taking Care of Magical Creatures, are you?'_

_Ron shook his head. 'And you're not either, are you?'_

_Harri shook her head too. _

'_And Hermione,' said Ron, 'she's not, is she?'_

_Harri shook her head again. Exactly what Hagrid would say when he realized his three favourite students had given up his subject, she did not like to think_, but she didn't have to think about it for long.

'Honey, I know that you are the Headmasters granddaughter and everything, but that doesn't mean that you're allowed to come here in Muggle clothes.' Severus said from behind.

'I didn't get a chance to change,' Harri replied, apologetically.

'How come?' Severus asked suspiciously.

'Cause she was spying on her lover boy,' Ron said, before adding to Severus, 'Congratz on the Defence post.'

'Why thank you Ron, but shouldn't you be getting off to the Gryffindor Tower?'

'Right, I'll see you tomorrow. Night!'

'Night Ron!' Severus and Harri said together, before they turned to wait for Aurora, so they could all go to their quarters together.

* * *

**Please Review!**

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**COMMENTS:  
****BulgarianFan () – ****I'm guessing that you were able to work out what the vision might mean. I am also glad that you are able to accept a girl Harry. Believe it or not, but I myself aren't a fan of reading female Harry's, mostly cause I have never come across a good one.**

**Aileen Autarkeia –**** Yeah, I like Valkyries too, even though I changed them a bit. I'm afraid that you will have to wait for the big Harri and Draco confrontation near the end of the story. Hopefully I'll be able to write it well enough.**

**THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING:  
****BulgarianFan (), Aileen Autarkeia, DoctorMarthaJones, YoruichiKittyCat16.**


	3. Life at Hogwarts

**CHAPTER THREE: LIFE AT HOGWARTS**

The next morning, Harri joined her friends at the Gryffindor table, and yet again, Draco was at the Slytherin table.

'I'm sure he's fine, Harri,' said Hermione, as Harri told Hermione her worries. 'Draco's a tough guy. I'm sure he'll get through whatever it is that is bothering him.'

'I just wish that I could help him!' Harri sighed for the hundredth time.

'I know, Harri, but you can't help everyone.'

'It's crazy, but at first I thought that he had become a Death Eater.' Harri admitted.

'That is a crazy theory. Why would Draco become a Death Eater? He is nothing like those monsters.' Said Neville.

'I know.'

'You six ready for a new term?' Minerva asked Luna, Neville, Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Harri, as she came around with their timetables.

'Sure thing, Professor!' Said Hermione.

'Then let's get your timetables sorted out then, shall we.'

Hermione got her timetable down first and left immediately for Ancient Runes.

'If only there were more students like that,' muttered Minerva, before doing Ginny and Luna's timetables. Finally, only Neville, Harri and Ron were left. Neville's took a while to sort out, Harri's was done in no time, but Ron's took a little longer.

'All your results were fine, Ron, but I notice that you haven't added potions to your list of subjects to do this year.' Minerva said, looking at Ron, over her clipboard.

'I was told that I needed to get an "Outstanding" to continue with potions, Professor.' Ron said frowning slightly.

'That was when Professor Snape was teaching potions, however Professor Slughorn is happy to accept students that have achieved "Exceeds Expectations",' replied Minerva, handing Ron his timetable, not giving him a choice whether or not he should do potions. 'Have a good day you three.' Minerva added, as she walked off to do Parvati's timetable.

'That sucks, I don't want to do potions!' Said Ron.

'Yet you want to become an Auror?' Said an amused Harri.

'Oh, shut up Harri!' Said Ron. 'So, what are you doing for Quidditch?'

'I haven't even thought about it yet. Already twenty people have put their names down to try out. That reminds me, why haven't you put your name down?' Demanded Harri.

'Harri, I suck and we both know it.' Ron said.

'No you don't. Now, when I hold the try-outs you better be there!'

'Okay, okay. I definitely know whose granddaughter you are!' Ron said. Just like Minerva, Harri wasn't giving him a choice.

* * *

Harri, Ron and Neville met up with Hermione and Draco two hours later, outside their Defence classroom. Draco was doing Ancient Runes too, and both of them were carrying a stack of heavy books.

'What's with the books?' Asked Ron.

'We've got to read them by Wednesday, plus we have to write a fifteen-inch essay by Monday, and we have to also learn and remember two long translations.' Answered Draco. 'Somehow, I don't think any of us will be getting any sleep this year...at least I know I won't be.'

'Sucks to be yous.' Said Ron, sniggering slightly.

'Just wait, Ron, Uncle Sev is probably going to give us a lot of homework too. That's why we have all those free periods on our timetables. It's so we can do homework and study.' Answered Harri, taking one of the books out of Draco's arms and flicking through it.

'There should be a law about giving students homework on their first week of school, or at least a lot of it.' Said Ron stubbornly.

'Good luck getting that one passed,' came a light chuckle from the Defence classroom's doorway. Severus was staring over at them.

'Would you try and get it passed for me?' Ron asked hopefully.

'Why would I do that? I'm a teacher, remember?' Laughed Severus. 'Okay, come in everyone.' Added Severus, walking back into the classroom before adding over his shoulder, 'There will be no need to take your books out.'

The class looked excited and quickly hurried to their seats so they could get started.

'Okay, as you know the Dark Arts are many, varied, ever-changing and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a hydra. It is like severing its neck where each time it sprouts more heads that are fiercer and clearer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating and indestructible.' Began Severus, grabbing everyone's attention. 'Your defences therefore must be as flexible and inventive as the Arts you seek to undo. For example, these pictures,' he said, indicating to the pictures on the walls, 'give a fair representation of what happens to those who suffer the Cruciatus Curse, feel the Dementor's Kiss, or provoke the aggression of the Inferius.'

'Has an Inferius been seen then? Parvati asked in a high-pitched voice. 'You-Know-Who is definitely using them?'

'It is possible that he will use them again, seeing as he did use them in the past.' Severus said sadly, before getting back to the lesson. 'Today we will be looking at the use of non-verbal spells. Does anyone know what the advantage of a non-verbal spell is?'

Hermione's hand went straight in the air, making a few Slytherins to mock her cruelly.

'I should have known,' Severus said quietly, with a slight chuckle. 'Hermione?'

'Your adversary has no warning about what kind of magic you're about to perform which gives you a split-second advantage.' Hermione said promptly.

'Correct five points to Gryffindor.' Said Severus. 'Those who progress to use magic without shouting incantations gain an element of surprise in their spell-casting. Not all wizards can do this, of course; it is a question of concentration and mind power which some lack. So let's begin. You will split into pairs. One partner will attempt to jinx the other _without speaking_, while the other will attempt to repel the jinx _without speaking_. I know that most of you can do it speaking, due to the DA, so now turn them into mutual casting. Begin.'

By the end of the class, Harri, Draco and Hermione were the first to master the non-verbal spells, and each got twenty points.

'I think that was one of the best lessons we've ever had!' Neville said as they left the class to go to lunch.

'It really was, though I was starting to wonder if he wrote that speech that Harri gave us last year during the DA.' Said Hermione, glancing at Harri.

'What are you talking about, Hermione?' Asked Harri, looking at her friend as though she had just started to talk backwards.

'You know, when you were telling us what it was like to face Voldemort. You said that it wasn't just memorising a bunch of spells, you said that it was just you and your brains and your guts - and that's what Severus was saying as well. So you to both gave us the same speech, basically.'

'How on earth did you remember all that?' Harri asked. 'Even I don't remember saying that, though I was pretty angry that year, so...' She trailed off with a shrug. 'Are you going to sit with us, Draco?' Harry added, looking over at Draco.

'Sure, why not? But I want to get to the library after a quick lunch to get started on homework.' Answered Draco.

'We'll come with...'

'Harri! Harri!' Someone said, interrupting what Harri was about to say.

The five friends turned around and saw Jack Sloper running towards them.

'Jack? Is something wrong?' Asked Harri.

'No, no. I was just sent to give you this.' Panted Jack, handing Harri a rolled up piece of paper. 'Listen, while I've got you, I heard that you're the new Quidditch captain, so when are you holding the try-outs? This weekend?'

'I haven't decided yet, but when I do I'll put a message on the notice board.' Harri replied.

'Oh, okay. See you later, Harri.' Jack said before walking off.

'Who's the scroll from?' Asked Draco.

'Grandfather, if the writing is anything to go by,' replied Harri, before reading it out loud.

_Dear Harri,_

_I would like to start our private lessons this Saturday. Kindly come along to my office at eight p.m. _

_I hope you are enjoying your first day back at school._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Grandfather_

_P.S. I enjoy Acid Pops_

'Lessons? What lessons?' Asked Draco, looking completely confused and Neville looked equally confused.

'Oh yeah, I thought to tell you,' said Harri, before she quickly explained about her grandfather giving her private lessons to help protect her from Voldemort.

'But, didn't you get that bracelet from Voldemort?' Hermione asked quickly.

'Yeah, but my grandparents still don't know about me being on speaking terms with him. And it's going to remain that way!' Harri added sternly, telling her friends to to tell them anything.

'If that's what you want, and if his no threat to you, but why didn't Albus just tell you to meet him, instead of writing you a letter?' Asked Neville, as they walked to the Great Hall for lunch.

'I think his out doing stuff for the Order,' replied Harri.

Once the friends had finished their lunch, they made their way to the library to work on their homework. Severus had told them to write an essay on non-verbal spells, and with all five of them together (well, mostly Harri, Hermione and Draco) they had the essay done in no time.

Once the lunch break was over, Hermione and Draco went off to Arithmancy while Harri, Neville and Ron headed back to the Gryffindor common room for a game of chess, and when the bell went Ron and Harri left Neville and made their way to Potions, where they met up with Hermione and Draco.

When Ron and Harri arrived at the classroom, they saw that Draco and Hermione were already there and they were talking about their last lesson, while ignoring the glares they were getting from the other three Slytherins that were present.

'I take it you had a good lesson,' Harri said, stopping in front to them.

'Yeah, but we have to write another essay,' sighed Draco, casually putting his arm around Harry's shoulders.

'That's your fault for choosing those subjects,' laughed Ron.

Before Draco could respond the classroom door opened and Slughorn allowed them inside. He greeted Harri and Zabini with particular enthusiasm, as the class began find their seats.

The first thing Harri noticed as she entered the classroom that it was already full of vapours and odd smells. Draco, Harri, Hermione and Ron all took their seats at the front of the classroom near a gold-colour cauldron that was emitting some of the most seductive scents Harri had ever inhaled. The smells of the fresh air at Acacia, the woody smell of a broomstick handle and another smell that reminded her of Draco. Harri had a feeling that this potion was Amortentia, as she rested her head on Draco's shoulder, closing her eyes when she felt him rest his head on top of her own.

'Now then,' began Slughorn, 'scales out, everyone, and potion kits, and don't forget your copies of _Advanced Potion-Making_.' Slughorn said, ignoring Ron's hand that went in the air.

Noticing this, Harri put her own hand in the air and Slughorn looked over at her immediately.

'Yes, Harri.'

'My friend Ron hasn't got a set of scales or a Advance Potion Making seeing as Grandmother only told him this morning that he was able to do potions.' Harri said.

'Yes...I do recall Minerva saying something about that. Not a problem. He can borrow a set of school scales and one of the books too, until he can write to Flourish and Blotts. And of course he can borrow the school ingredients.' Slughorn replied to Harri, acting as though Ron wasn't even there, before he went and got a pair of scales and an old, tattered potions book for Ron.

'Now then,' Slughorn said, once he had given Ron the items. 'I've prepared a few potions for you to have a look at, just out of interest, you know. These are the kind of things you ought to be able to make after completing your N.E.W.T.s. You ought to have heard of 'em, even if you haven't made 'em yet. Can anyone tell me what this one is?' Slughorn asked, indicating to a cauldron that looked like it had just boiling water in it.

Hermione's hand automatically went straight in the air. Slughorn pointed to her.

'Veritaserum; a colourless, odourless potion that forces the drinker to tell the truth.' Answered Hermione.

'Very good, very good!' Slughorn said happily. 'Now, who can tell me what this one is?'

Hermione's hand was back up in the air, and answered, 'Polyjuice Potion, sir.'

'Correct! Now, this one here...yes, my dear?' said Slughorn, now looking slightly bemused as Hermione's hand punched the air again.

'Amortentia.'

'It is indeed. It seems almost foolish to asked,' said Slughorn, who was looking mightily impressed, ' but I assume you know what it does?'

'It's the most powerful love potion in the world.' Hermione answered promptly.

'Correct, yet again! May I ask your name, my dear?' Said Slughorn.

'Hermione Granger, sir.'

'Granger? Granger? Can you possibly be related to Hector Dagworth-Granger, who founded the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers?'

'No, I don't think so, sir. I'm Muggleborn you see.'

'Oho! "_One of my best friends is Muggleborn and she's the best in our year_!" I'm assuming this is the very friend of whom you spoke, Harri?' Slughorn asked beaming as he looked from Harri to Hermione, seeing as they were sitting next to each other.

'Yes, sir,' replied Harri.

'Well, take twenty well earned points for Gryffindor, Miss Granger!' Slughorn said, before turning back to the rest of the class, explaining Amortentia in more detail, while Harri slowly began to dose off with her head still on Draco's shoulder.

Once Slughorn had finished explaining Amortentia, he showed them another potion which turned out to be Felix Felicis, or otherwise known as Liquid Luck, and when he mentioned that the person that made the best Draught of Living Death would win a small bottle of Felix Felicis, Harri felt Draco tense underneath her and sit up a little straighter. This confused Harri, as she looked up into Draco's face. He wasn't acting as weirdly as he had been at Harri's birthday and Diagon Alley, but his behaviour was still strange. But she shrugged it off as she started to make the potion required. On the other side of Draco, she could hear Ron cursing about something, until Draco book his potions book where both Ron and he could see it.

At the end of the lesson, Harri was the winner of the Felix Felicis, which came as no surprise.

'You are evidently the winner, Harri! Good Lord, it's clear that you've inherited your mother's talent, she was a dab hand at Potions, Lily was! Or you are like your Uncle! He was excellent at potions too!'

'Which one?' Harri asked, wondering if she was going to find out the Voldemort was a talented potions master too.

'Which one?' Slughorn asked, confused for a minute. 'Oh, both of them, actually, but Severus was the best, as you would already know, seeing as he was your potions professor for five years. Anyway, here's the bottle of Felix Felicis, as promised, and use it well!'

'Yes, sir.' Harri replied.

As the four friends left potions to go to dinner, Harri turned to Ron.

'Ron, what were you cursing about when we started to make the potion?' Harri asked.

'Someone had written in it, making it hard to read the instructions.' Ron grumbled, reaching into his bag and showing Harri the book. 'The writing looks familiar though, but who ever owned the book, when by the name of the Half-Blood Prince.'

'How do you know that?' Draco asked, as Harri flicked through the old potions book.

'It was written on the bottom of the back cover,' replied Ron. 'But seriously, who writes all over their book so they can't read the instructions!'

'Uncle Sev,' said Harri.

'Huh?'

'In answer to your question, Uncle Sev.' Smiled Harri. 'And the reason the writing looks familiar is because this use to belong to Uncle Sev.'

'That makes sense, cause he's a half-blood, isn't he? - and he's a Prince.' Said Hermione.

'True, but I don't think that was the meaning behind the words. "Severus Snape's" is also a half-blood -witch mother, Muggle father - and his mother's last name was "Prince".' Explained Harri.

'Oh, I get it,' said Hermione.

'After dinner, why don't you come with me to my quarters and I'll see if I can find another copy of Advance Potion Making lying about. Cause Uncle Sev invented some dangerous spells. I don't think he realised his old text book had been lying about.'

'Yeah, thanks Harri.' Said Ron.

At the end of dinner, just as the group of friends were about to leave the table, Albus raised to make an announcement.

'Just a quick announcement to let the fourth years and up, that this year's ball will have the theme of Kings, Queens, Princes, and Princesses of any kind. That is all.' Albus said, before sitting back down.

'That's easy enough.' Said Harri as she made her way back to her quarters with Draco, Ron and Hermione.

'Yeah, you don't even have to dress up,' joked Ron.

'True.'

Harri left her friends sitting in the living room while she looked around for another potions book. In the end, she came back and sat down next to Draco, empty handed, frowning slightly.

'I swear I saw a copy somewhere here!'

'Saw a copy of what?' Asked Severus as he walked into the room with Aurora.

'Advance Potion Making.' Answered Harri.

'Why do you need a copy? What's wrong with yours?'

'Nothing, I was just trying to find a copy for Ron, seeing as the copy Slughorn gave him was really appropriate.'

'What do you mean it wasn't appropriate?' Asked Severus as he summoned his copy of Advance Potion Making.

'Um, maybe because it's yours. The one you wrote in at school.' Harri said, handing Severus his old school book.

'I wondered where that got to. Lucky it was Ron that found it. Here you go Ron; you can use my potions book.' Severus added, handing Ron the book.

'Thanks Sev.' Said Ron.

* * *

**Please Review!**

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the late update.**

* * *

**Written: 21 July 2011**


	4. Memories and Quidditch

**CHAPTER FOUR: MEMORIES AND QUIDDITCH**

Soon it was the weekend again, and Harri and her friends spent Saturday morning catching up with all their homework, before Severus and Aurora took them out shopping to get clothes for the upcoming ball.

'So, have you all decided what you want to go as?' Asked Aurora, while they were waiting for Severus.

'Yeah, I'm just going to dust one of my dresses off at Acacia that Gran bought me last year.' Said Harri. 'At least then I can say that I have actually worn a dress that she has bought me.'

'What about you, Ginny?' Aurora said, still chuckling from Harri's comment.

'I'm going as a Fire Princess or a Princess of Fire,' Ginny said, and when Aurora asked her more about her costume, she said that she would have to wait till that night.

'All right, if I must. Hermione, what about you?'

'A simple olden day Princess.' Hermione answered simply.

'Cool. Luna?'

'Fairy.' Luna said dreamily.

'So, what about you boys? I take it your just going as a normal modern Prince, matching with Harri, Draco?' Aurora asked, turning to the boys.

'Um, yeah,' replied Draco, through a yawn.

'Yeah, Luna has convinced me to go as a fairy too.' Neville said, though he wasn't too sure on the idea. Maybe he could get rid of the wings.

'Ron?' Asked Aurora. 'Going with Hermione again? Going as an "olden day" Prince?'

'Yes, as long as I don't look ridiculous.' Answered Ron.

'So, who are you going with, Ginny?'

'Dean Thomas.' Ginny replied, ignoring the look Ron was giving her.

'Weren't you dating Michael Corner last year?' Aurora asked, frowning in confusion.

'Yeah, but he turned out to be a sole loser and everything, so now I'm dating Dean.' Commented Ginny as though she was talking about the weather.

'Right. Where is Severus?' Aurora said, looking down at her watch. 'He was meant to be here fifteen minutes ago!'

Just as she finished her sentence, an annoyed Severus Dumbledore walked in.

The moment Harri set eyes on her uncle, she started roaring with laughter, as she fell to the ground, but who wouldn't if they saw their uncle walk into a room with pink hair.

'What – happened to you?' Aurora asked, trying not to laugh.

'A group of first year Gryffindors thought it would be funny to make their cauldrons explode, and this is the result.' Answered an unhappy Severus. Out of all the colours in the world, his hair had to turn pink! And there was no way for him to change it back to normal.

'At least we won't miss you out shopping,' laughed Harri.

'You better watch out before I turn your hair pink, young lady.' Severus said as he walked to his bedroom to get changed. 'Okay, let's go and get this over and down with.' Grumbled Severus, when he walked back out of the bedroom, ignoring the fact that Harri and her friends were still laughing. Draco was the only one who wasn't laughing; instead he had a small smile on his face.

The shopping trip had been a success, everyone found what they were after, and by the end of the trip, Harri realised that she didn't know what Severus and Aurora were going as.

'Aurora? Uncle Sev? What are you two going as?' Harri asked as they sat at a small cafe eating ice-cream.

'Aurora said that she had always wanted to dress up as an Egyptian Queen, so that's what she's going as and I'm going as her Pharaoh.' Answered Severus.

'I think that you will look very pretty as an Egyptian Queen, Aurora.' Commented Luna.

'Aww, thanks Luna.' Smiled Aurora.

That night, Harri sat with her friends in the Gryffindor common room. Draco was the only one missing. Apparently he had some "work" that he needed to get done, though he would never tell Harri or anyone else what that work was.

At five to eight, Harri looked down at her watch and excused herself from the game of Exploding Snap they were playing.

'I better head off to Grandfather's office. I'll see you guys later.' Harri sat as she stood up.

'Ooooh,' gasped Hermione, looking up at once. 'Good luck! And tell us what happens tomorrow!'

'Yeah, have fun Harri.' Said Neville, before they all returned to their game as Harri walked out the portrait hole.

It took Harri less than five minutes to make her way to Albus' office and when she arrived, she gave the Gargoyle the password (Acid Pops) and made her way up the spiral staircase. Upon arriving at Albus' office door, she knock and then entered when Albus said to come in.

'Good evening, Grandfather.' Harry greeted as she closed the door behind her and walked over to Albus' desk.

'Good evening to you to, sweet heart. Please take a seat.' Albus said, smiling. 'I hope you've had a pleasant first week back at school?'

'Yeah, it's been alright though it would have been more enjoyable if I wasn't so worried about Draco.' Harry replied.

'Harri, I'm sure his fine. He'll be right as rain soon enough.' Albus said confidently.

'That's what you said at my birthday,' muttered Harri.

'True. Now enough chitchat. I shall get straight to the point of why you are here.' Albus said, changing the subject smoothly. 'You have probably been wondering what I have planned for you during these..."lessons", am I right?'

'Yes, Grandfather. I have some theories, of course.' Answered Harri, making Albus chuckle slightly. Of course his granddaughter would come up with some sort of theory.

'Well, I have decided that you are old enough to now know what prompted T-Voldemort to try and kill you fifteen years ago.' Continued Albus. 'Now, from this point forth, we shall be leaving the firm foundation of fact and journeying together through the murky marshes of memory into thickets of wildest guesswork. From here on in, Harri, I may be as woefully wrong as Humfrey Belcher, who believed the time was ripe for a cheese cauldron.'

'But you think you are right?' Harri said grinning, already knowing the answer.

'Naturally I do,' replied Albus, this time making Harri give a slight laugh, 'but as I have already proven to you, I make mistakes like the next man, even though they tend to be correspondingly bigger.'

'So what you are about to teach me will have something to do with the prophecy and help me survive if Voldemort decides to try and kill me again?' Harri asked.

'Yes,' answered Albus, frowning slightly at the last part of Harri's question. The way she said it sounded as though Voldemort that given up on trying to kill her at the moment. Shrugging it off, Albus got to his feet and retrieved his Pensieve.

'What's the Pensieve got to do with anything?' Asked a confused Harri.

'We will be going for a trip down Bob Ogden's memory lane,' replied Albus, as he poured the memory into the Pensieve.

'Right. Who's Bob Ogden?'

'He was employed by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement,' said Albus. 'He died some time ago, but not before I had tracked him down and persuaded him to confide these recollections to me. We are about to accompany him on a visit he made in the course of his duties. Ladies first,' Albus added, indicating to the Pensieve.

Harri bent forward, took a deep breath, and plunged her face into the silvery substance within the Pensieve. She felt his feet leave the office floor before falling, falling through whirling darkness and then, quite suddenly, she was blinking in dazzling sunlight. Albus landed beside her.

They were standing in a country lane bordered by high, tangled hedgerows, beneath a summer sky as bright and blue as a forget-me-not. Some ten feet in front of them stood a short, plump man wearing enormously thick glasses that reduced his eyes to mole like specks. He was reading a wooden signpost that was sticking out of the brambles on the left-hand side of the road. Harry knew this must be Ogden; he was the only person in sight, and he was also wearing the strange assortment of clothes so often chosen by inexperienced wizards trying to look like Muggles: in this case, a frock coat and spats over a striped one-piece bathing costume.

Ogden then set off at a brisk walk down the lane.

Albus and Harri followed him. As they passed the wooden sign, Harri looked up at its two arms. The one pointing back the way they had come read: Great Hangleton, 5 miles. The arm pointing after Ogden said Little Hangleton, 1 mile.

They walked a short way with nothing to see but the hedgerows, the wide blue sky overhead and the swishing, frock-coated figure ahead. Then the lane curved to the left and fell away, sloping steeply down a hillside, so that they had a sudden, unexpected view of a whole valley laid out in front of them. Harri could see a village, undoubtedly Little Hangleton, nestled between two steep hills, its church and graveyard clearly visible. Across the valley, set on the opposite hillside, was a handsome manor house surrounded by a wide expanse of velvety green lawn.

Ogden had broken into a reluctant trot due to the steep downward slope. Albus lengthened his stride, and Harri easily kept pace. Harri had thought that Little Hangleton was going to be their final destination and wondered why they had to approach it from such a distance. Harri soon discovered, however, that she was mistaken in thinking that they were going to the village. The lane curved to the right and when they rounded the corner, it was to see the very edge of Ogden's frock coat vanishing through a gap in the hedge.

Albus and Harri followed him onto a narrow dirt track bordered by higher and wilder hedgerows than those they had left behind. The path was crooked, rocky, and potholed, sloping down-hill like the last one, and it seemed to be heading for a patch of dark trees a little below them. Sure enough, the track soon opened up at the copse, and Albus and Harri came to a halt behind Ogden, who had stopped and drawn his wand, which confused Harri greatly. Why did he draw his wand? Was he expecting trouble?

Harri then turned her attention to the house that was half-hidden amongst the tangle of tree trunks. It seemed to her a very strange location to choose for a house, or else an odd decision to leave the trees growing nearby, blocking all light and the view of the valley below. She wondered whether it was inhabited seeing as its walls were mossy and so many tiles had fallen off the roof that the rafters were visible in places. Nettles grew all around it, their tips reaching the windows, which were tiny and thick with grime. However, she dismissed this theory when she noticed thin trickle of smoke issued from the chimney.

Ogden moved forward quietly and rather cautiously. As the dark shadows of the trees slid over him, he stopped again, staring at the front door, to which somebody had nailed a dead snake. Harri stared at the dead snake in disgust. Who would be cruel enough to nail the poor thing to the door? But Harri didn't have time to think it over for there was a rustle and a crack, and a man in rags dropped from the nearest tree, landing on his feet right in front of Ogden, who leapt backward so fast he stood on the tails of his frock coat and stumbled.

'You're not welcome.'

The man standing before them had thick hair so matted with dirt it could have been any colour. Several of his teeth were missing. His eyes were small and dark and stared in opposite directions. He might have looked comical, but he did not; the effect was frightening, and Harri could not blame Ogden for backing away several more paces before he spoke.

'Er — good morning. I'm from the Ministry of Magic —'

'You're not welcome.'

'Er — I'm sorry — I don't understand you,' said Ogden nervously.

Harri raised her slim eyebrows at Ogden, thinking that he was being extremely dim; the stranger was making himself very clear in Harri's opinion, particularly as he was brandishing a wand in one hand and a short and rather bloody knife in the other.

'You understand him, I'm sure, Harri?' Albus said quietly, noticing the look Harri was giving Ogden.

'Yes, of course,' said Harri, slightly nonplussed. 'Why can't Ogden — ?' She stopped when her eyes found the dead snake on the door again. S he suddenly understood. 'He's speaking Parseltongue, isn't he?'

'Very good,' said Albus, nodding and smiling.

'I still think that Ogden is being pretty dim. Even if he can't understand that the man is saying "you're not welcome", you would think that he would get the message with his brandishing his wand and knife at him.' Harri said stubbornly.

'I thought that was what he was saying,' Albus commented mildly.

'Why do you say that? How do you even know Parseltongue? I mean, you're the Heir of Gryffindor.'

'True, but your Uncle Tom use to say that to me when I went to his bedroom.' Albus replied.

Harri stared at her Grandfather for a bit more, before turning back to the memory unfolding in front of her, as the man in rags was now advancing on Ogden, knife in one hand, wand in the other.

Now, look —' Ogden began, but too late: There was a bang, and Ogden was on the ground, clutching his nose, while a nasty yellowish goo squirted from between his fingers.

Morfin!' said a loud voice.

An elderly man had come hurrying out of the cottage, banging the door behind him so that the dead snake swung pathetically. This man was shorter than the first, and oddly proportioned; his shoulders were very broad and his arms overlong, which, with his bright brown eyes, short scrubby hair, and wrinkled face, gave him the look of a powerful, aged monkey. He came to a halt beside the man with the knife, who was now cackling with laughter at the sight of Ogden on the ground.

'Ministry, is it?' said the older man, looking down at Ogden.

'Correct!' said Ogden angrily, dabbing his face. 'And you, I take it, are Mr. Gaunt?'

'S'right,' said Gaunt. 'Got you in the face, did he?'

'Yes, he did!' snapped Ogden.

'Should've made your presence known, shouldn't you?' said Gaunt aggressively. 'This is private property. Can't just walk in here and not expect my son to defend himself.'

'Defend himself against what, man?' said Ogden, clambering back to his feet.

'Busybodies. Intruders. Muggles and filth.' Ogden pointed his wand at his own nose, which was still issuing large amounts of what looked like yellow pus, and the flow stopped at once. Mr. Gaunt spoke out of the corner of his mouth to Morfin. 'Get in the house. Don't argue.'

This time, ready for it, Harri recognised Parseltongue; even while she could understand what was being said, she distinguished the weird hissing noise that was all Ogden could hear. Morfin seemed to be on the point of disagreeing, but when his father cast him a threatening look he changed his mind, lumbering away to the cottage with an odd rolling gait and slamming the front door behind him, so that the snake swung sadly again.

'It's your son I'm here to see, Mr. Gaunt,' said Ogden, as he mopped the last of the pus from the front of his coat. 'That was Morfin, wasn't it?'

'Ah, that was Morfin,' said the old man indifferently. 'Are you pure-blood?' he asked, suddenly aggressive.

'Argh, let me guess...a pure-blood maniac!' Harri said, wrinkling up her nose.

'That's neither here nor there,' said Ogden coldly, and Harri felt her respect for Ogden rise.

Apparently Gaunt felt rather differently for he squinted into Ogden's face and muttered, in what was clearly supposed to be an offensive tone, 'Now I come to think about it, I've seen noses like yours down in the village.'

'I don't doubt it, if your son's been let loose on them,' said Ogden. 'Perhaps we could continue this discussion inside?'

'Inside?'

'Yes, Mr. Gaunt. I've already told you. I'm here about Morfin. We sent an owl —'

'I've no use for owls,' said Gaunt. 'I don't open letters.'

'Then you can hardly complain that you get no warning of visitors,' said Ogden tartly. Yes, Harri's respect for Ogden was definitely increasing. 'I am here following a serious breach of Wizarding law, which occurred here in the early hours of this morning —'

'All right, all right, all right!' bellowed Gaunt. 'Come in the bleeding house, then, and much good it'll do you!'

The house seemed to contain three tiny rooms. Two doors led off the main room, which served as kitchen and living room combined. Morfin was sitting in a filthy armchair beside the smoking fire, twisting a live adder between his thick fingers and crooning softly at it in Parseltongue:

_Hissy, hissy, little snakey, _  
_Slither on the floor _  
_You be good to Morfin _  
_Or he'll nail you to the door. _

If Harri could, she would have gone over to him and would have ripped the poor little adder out of his hands. She hated it when people tormented animals, but her anger shortly disappeared and was replaced with curiosity when she heard a scuffling noise in the corner beside the open window, and Harri realized that there was somebody else in the room, a girl whose ragged gray dress was the exact colour of the dirty stone wall behind her.

She was standing beside a steaming pot on a grimy black stove, and was fiddling around with the shelf of squalid-looking pots and pans above it. Her hair was lank and dull and she had a plain, pale, rather heavy face. Her eyes, like her brother's, stared in opposite directions. She looked a little cleaner than the two men, but Harri thought he had never seen a more defeated-looking person.

'M'daughter, Merope,' said Gaunt grudgingly, as Ogden looked inquiringly toward her.

'Good morning,' said Ogden.

She did not answer, but with a frightened glance at her father turned her back on the room and continued shifting the pots on the shelf behind her.

'Well, Mr. Gaunt,' said Ogden, 'to get straight to the point, we have reason to believe that your son, Morfin, performed magic in front of a Muggle late last night.'

There was a deafening clang. Merope had dropped one of the pots.

'Pick it up!' Gaunt bellowed at her. 'That's it, grub on the floor like some filthy Muggle, what's your wand for, you useless sack of muck?'

'And here I was thinking Uncle Vernon had been bad,' muttered Harri, feeling sorry for the girl in front of her.

'Mr. Gaunt, please!' said Ogden in a shocked voice, as Merope, who had already picked up the pot, flushed blotchily scarlet, lost her grip on the pot again, drew her wand shakily from her pocket, pointed it at the pot, and muttered a hasty, inaudible spell that caused the pot to shoot across the floor away from her, hit the opposite wall, and crack in two.

Morfin let out a mad cackle of laughter.

Gaunt screamed, 'Mend it, you pointless lump, mend it!'

Merope stumbled across the room, but before she had time to raise her wand, Ogden had lifted his own and said firmly, 'Reparo.' The pot mended itself instantly.

Gaunt looked for a moment as though he was going to shout at Ogden, but seemed to think better of it: Instead, he jeered at his daughter, 'Lucky the nice man from the Ministry's here, isn't it? Perhaps he'll take you off my hands, perhaps he doesn't mind dirty Squibs. . . .'

Without looking at anybody or thanking Ogden, Merope picked up the pot and returned it, hands trembling, to its shelf. She then stood quite still, her back against the wall between the filthy window and the stove, as though she wished for nothing more than to sink into the stone and vanish.

'Mr. Gaunt,' Ogden began again, 'as I've said: the reason for my visit —'

'I heard you the first time!' snapped Gaunt. 'And so what? Morfin gave a Muggle a bit of what was coming to him — what about it, then?'

'Morfin has broken Wizarding law,' said Ogden sternly.

'"'Morfin has broken Wizarding law."' Gaunt imitated Ogden's voice, making it pompous and singsong. Morfin cackled again. 'He taught a filthy Muggle a lesson, that's illegal now, is it?'

'Yes,' said Ogden. 'I'm afraid it is.'

He pulled from an inside pocket a small scroll of parchment and unrolled it.

'What's that, then, his sentence?' said Gaunt, his voice rising angrily.

'It is a summons to the Ministry for a hearing —'

'Summons! Summons? Who do you think you are, summoning my son anywhere?'

'I'm Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Squad,' said Ogden.

'And you think we're scum, do you?' screamed Gaunt, advancing on Ogden now, with a dirty yellow-nailed finger pointing at his chest. 'Scum who'll come running when the Ministry tells 'em to? Do you know who you're talking to, you filthy little Mudblood, do you?'

'I was under the impression that I was speaking to Mr. Gaunt,' said Ogden, looking wary, but standing his ground.

'That's right!' roared Gaunt. As he was showing Ogden the ugly, black-stoned ring he was wearing on his middle finger, waving it before Ogden's eyes. 'See this? See this? Know what it is? Know where it came from? Centuries it's been in our family, that's how far back we go, and pure-blood all the way! Know how much I've been offered for this, with the Peverell coat of arms engraved on the stone?'

'I've really no idea,' said Ogden, blinking as the ring sailed within an inch of his nose, 'and it's quite beside the point, Mr. Gaunt. Your son has committed —'

With a howl of rage, Gaunt ran toward his daughter. For a split second, Harri thought he was going to throttle her as his hand flew to her throat; next moment, he was dragging her toward Ogden by a gold chain around her neck.

'See this?' he bellowed at Ogden, shaking a heavy gold locket at him, while Merope spluttered and gasped for breath.

'I see it, I see it!' said Ogden hastily.

'Slytherins!' yelled Gaunt. 'Salazar Slytherin's! We're his last living descendants, what do you say to that, eh?'

Harri breathed in sharply. She was related to these people.

'Mr. Gaunt, your daughter!' said Ogden in alarm, but Gaunt had already released Merope; she staggered away from him, back to her corner, massaging her neck and gulping for air.

'So!' said Gaunt triumphantly, as though he had just proved a complicated point beyond all possible dispute. 'Don't you go talking to us as if we're dirt on your shoes! Generations of purebloods, wizards all — more than you can say, I don't doubt!'

And he spat on the floor at Ogden's feet. Morfin cackled again. Merope, huddled beside the window, her head bowed and her face hidden by her lank hair, said nothing.

"I think that will do, Harry," said Albus, taking Harri by the elbow and tugging. Next moment, they were both soaring weightlessly through darkness, until they landed squarely on their feet, back in Albus' now twilit office.

'I'm confused.' Harri admitted, sitting down in her usual seat. What was the point of showing me that?'

'What do you think it was about?' Wondered Albus, ignoring the look Harri was giving him for not answering her question.

'Um, you wanted to show me that I am sadly related to Marvolo Grant?' Harri replied.

'No, that wasn't what I wanted to show you. Though you now know how your grandmother felt being his cousin. '

'So why did you show me it?' Asked Harri. She was starting to get annoyed. She hated it when her grandfather spoke in riddles.

'I showed you it to you so you could get a good look at the two family relics that were shown.'

'The ring and the necklace? What's that got to do with anything?'

'I will explain it to you later, but tonight is not the night,' replied Albus.

Harri just stared at Albus. Everything he was saying made no sense.

'Anyway, I think that will do for tonight, Harry," said Dumbledore after a moment or two.

'If you say so,' said Harri as she got to her feet, still confused as to why Albus showed her the two family heir looms. Did he want her to find them and wear them? Did they have magical properties that would protect her?

Just as she was about to turn and leave, a question occurred to her.

'Grandfather, am I allowed to tell me friends everything you tell me?'

'If it's only your close friends, then I believe you have every right to tell them. They have proven themselves to be trustworthy.' Albus replied, after a moment's hesitation. 'But Harri, I am going to ask you to ask them not to repeat any of this to anybody else. It would not be a good idea if word got around how much I know, or suspect, about Lord Voldemort's secrets."

'Don't worry, it will only be them. Good night, Grandfather.'

Harri turned away again, and was almost at the door when she saw it. Sitting on one of the little spindle-legged tables that supported so many frail-looking silver instruments, was an ugly gold ring set with a large, cracked, black stone.

'Grandfather,' Harri gasped, staring at it. 'That ring—'

'Yes?'

'You were wearing it when we visited Professor Slughorn that night.'

'So I was,' Albus agreed.

'But isn't it... Grandfather, isn't it the same ring Marvolo Gaunt showed Ogden?'

'The very same.'

'But how come — ? Have you always had it?' This "lesson" was really starting to confuse Harri.

'No, I acquired it very recently,' said Albus. 'A few days before we went to Professor Slughorn's.'

'That would be around the time you injured your hand?' Harri asked suspiciously.

'Around that time, yes, Harri.'

'Grandfather, how exactly — ?'

'Too late, Harri! You shall hear the story another time.' Albus interrupted smiling.

'Can you at least allow me to try and heal it?' Harri asked stubbornly.

'Your Pendant will not be able to heal it, sweet heart, for it is dead.' Albus replied gently. 'Now, off to bed with you. Good night.'

'Good night, Grandfather,' Harri replied, and she reluctantly left.

* * *

The next morning, Harri filled her friends in about what happened the previous night.

'Now that is confusing. What has a ring and Slytherin's locket have to do with anything?' Asked Draco.

'No idea, but apparently it was important,' shrugged Harri, 'Hi Hagrid!' Harri added when Hagrid walked pasted. He didn't reply or make any gesture that he hear her.

'Okay, this is getting ridiculous. We'll have to go and explain everything to him!' Said Hermione.

'Well, we can't do it this morning. We have Quidditch tryouts!' Ron replied. 'Besides, how are we meant to explain to him that we hate his classes?'

'We didn't hate it, though!' Argued Hermione.

'Speak for yourself. I still haven't forgotten the Skrewts!' Ron said darkly.

'But...I hate not talking to Hagrid!' Said an upset Hermione.

'Me too, Hermione.' Said Harri. 'Listen, we'll go and see him after Quidditch.' She said, before adding. 'Speaking of Quidditch, I don't know why the team's become so popular all of a sudden.'

This simple comment made Draco snort in his drink and Severus, who was on his way to the teachers table, paused having heard what she had said.

'For someone as intelligent as you, that was a very stupid comment.' Severus told her, before going on his merry way.

'Huh?' Harri replied, looking confused.

'He has a point.' Said Draco, before explaining to Harri what he was talking about. 'It's not Quidditch that is popular...it's you! You're never been more interesting or more desirable, especially since everyone now knows that you have been telling the truth and after the Department of Mysteries incident. Plus add in your new title "Chosen One", can you see where I'm going with this? Can you see why a lot of boys are "trying out" at your favourite hobby?'

'Plus you're one of the most athletic and beautiful girls at school...' Added Neville.

'Intelligent and loyal...' said Ginny.

'Okay, okay! I get it!' Harri said, going red and looking down at her watch. 'It's nearly nine, we should head down to the Quidditch pitch.'

'Well, have fun at tryouts,' said Draco as the group of friends walked out of the Great Hall.

'What? Aren't you coming?' Asked Harri, slightly disappointed.

'No, I have something I need to work on.'

'What do you need to work on?' Harri asked quickly.

'Nothing.' Draco replied. 'Good luck, Ron, Ginny and I'll see you guys later.' Draco said quickly noticing that Harri was about to open her mouth to no doubt try and weed out what Draco was going to work on. After giving Harri a quick kiss, he walked away heading in the direction of the Grand Staircase.

'I wish I knew what he was up to.' Harri said as she watched Draco walk out of sight.

'Maybe his making you a secret present?' Suggested Ginny.

'I doubt it.' Harri said sadly. 'Let's go.'

When they arrived down at the Quidditch pitch, Neville, Luna and Hermione wished Ron and Ginny luck before they went off to find seats in the stands, while Harri, Ginny and Ron walked to the huge group of people that were trying out for a place. It seemed as though half of Gryffindor House had turned up, from nervous looking first years to intimidating seventh years.

As the trio approached the group, someone stepped forward and held out his hand to Harri. Harri recognised him immediately, as she accepted his hand while, Ron and Ginny went off to get ready.

'We met on the train, in old Sluggy's compartment,' he said confidently. 'Cormac McLaggen. Keeper.'

'You didn't try out last year, did you?' Harry asked as she took in McLaggen. With his breadth, she thought that he would probably be able to block all three goal hoops without moving much.

'I was in the hospital wing when they held the trials,' answered McLaggen, with something of a swagger. 'Ate a pound of doxy eggs for a bet.'

'Right,' said Harri, she wasn't impressed by that. 'Well, if you wait over with the others, we soon see what you've got.' She said, before walking off to get a few things ready, but as she did, she saw a flicker of annoyance pass over McLaggen's face.

Probably thinking that he'd get special treatment seeing as we're both Slughorn's favourites,' thought Harri. Personally, she didn't want McLaggen on the team, and she hoped that Ron would bet him.

'Okay, can I have your attention please?' Harri said, walking over to the group of potential Gryffindor Quidditch players. Ron, Ginny, Katie and a few others gave Harri their immediate attention, but the rest ignored her. Harri stood there tapping her foot for a minute and when it became even clearer that they weren't going to pay her any attention any time soon, she lost her temper. 'OI! PAY ATTENTION NOW! I'M NOT GOING TO STAND HERE ALL DAY LISTENING TO YOU GOSSIPING! NOW QUIET!'

That got everyone's attention. They quickly gave her their full attention. They were beginning to see that she was indeed related to Severus, Minerva and Albus.

'Thank you,' Harri continued quietly, knowing that everyone could hear her and that they were paying attention. 'To begin with, I want you to all break into groups of ten.' She said, before going silent.

When everyone realised that Harri wasn't going to say anything else, everyone, quickly and silently, broke into groups of ten. Once this was done, Harri continued;

'Now. When I give the okay, one group at a time will fly once around the pitch, to make sure that all of you can fly and that I'm not wasting my time.' Harri explained, when she sure a lot of eye rolling and looks of disbelief.

This turned out to be a good decision: the first ten was made up of first years, and it could not have been plainer that they had hardly ever flown before. Only one boy managed to remain airborne for more than a few seconds, and he was so surprised he promptly crashed into one of the goal posts.

The second group was comprised of ten of the silliest girls Harri had ever encountered, who, when she blew her whistle, merely fell about giggling and clutching one another. Romilda Vane was amongst them. When she told them to leave the pitch, they did so quite cheerfully and went to sit in the stands to heckle everyone else, while Harri rubbed the bridge of her nose.

The third group had a pileup halfway around the pitch. Most of the fourth group had come without broomsticks. The fifth group were Hufflepuffs, which turned out to be the last straw for Harri. She exploded.

'ALRIGHT, THAT IS IT! IF ANYONE ELSE HERE IS NOT FROM GRYFFINDOR, LEAVE IMMEDIATELY!' Harri then watched as a few people ran off the pitch from Ravenclaw. 'NOW, IF ANYONE ELSE HERE IS NOT SERIOUS ABOUT COMPETING AND ARE JUST HERE TO WASTE TIME, I SUGGEST THAT YOU LEAVE NOW AS WELL!' Harri then watched as a few more people walked off the pitch. 'Right, now they are out of the way, will the next group please go.'

Two hours later after many complaints, and several tantrums, one involving a crashed Comet Two Sixty and several broken teeth, Harri had found herself three Chasers: Katie Bell, returned to the team after an excellent trial; a new find called Demelza Robins, who was particularly good at dodging Bludgers; and Ginny, who had outflown all the competition and scored seventeen goals to boot. Pleased though he was with his choices, Harri had also shouted herself hoarse at the many complainers and was now enduring a similar battle with the rejected Beaters.

'That's my final decision and if you don't get out of the way of the Keepers I'll hex you,' she bellowed, and those she was yelling at practically ran off the pitch while everyone else just looked nervous and wary.

Neither of Harri's chosen Beaters had the old brilliance of Fred and George, but she was still reasonably pleased with them: Jimmy Peakes, a short but broad-chested third-year boy who had managed to raise a lump the size of an egg on the back of Harri's head with a ferociously hit Bludger, and Ritchie Coote, who looked weedy but aimed well. They now joined Katie, Demelza, and Ginny in the stands to watch the selection of their last team member.

Harri had deliberately left the trial of the Keepers until last, hoping for an emptier stadium and less pressure on all concerned. Unfortunately, however, all the rejected players and a number of people who had come down to watch after a lengthy breakfast had joined the crowd by now, so that it was larger than ever. As each Keeper flew up to the goal hoops, the crowd roared and jeered in equal measure. Harri glanced over at Ron, who had always had a problem with nerves; Harri had hoped that winning their final match last term might have cured it, but apparently not: Ron was a delicate shade of green.

None of the first five applicants saved more than two goals apiece and to Harri's great disappointment, Cormac McLaggen saved four penalties out of five. On the last one, however, he shot off in completely the wrong direction; the crowd laughed and booed and McLaggen returned to the ground grinding his teeth.

Ron looked ready to pass out as he mounted his Cleansweep Eleven, and Harri watched as Ron saved one, two, three, four, five penalties in a row, with her fingers crossed. Delighted, and resisting joining in the cheers of the crowd with difficulty, Harri turned to McLaggen to tell him that, most "unfortunately", Ron had beaten him, only to find McLaggen's red face inches from her own. Harri took a slight step backwards, seeing as she didn't like how close McLaggen was standing to her.

'His sister didn't really try,' said McLaggen menacingly. There was a vein pulsing in his temple like the one Harri had often admired in Uncle Vernon's. 'She gave him an easy save.'

'Rubbish,' Harri said very coldly. 'That was the one he nearly missed.'

McLaggen took a step nearer Harri, who stood her ground with her head held high.

'Give me another go.'

'No," said Harri. 'You've had your go. You saved four. Ron saved five. Ron's Keeper, he won it fair and square. Now, get out of my way!'

She thought for a moment that McLaggen might punch her or something, but he contented himself with an ugly grimace and stormed away, growling what sounded like threats to thin air.

Harri turned around to find her new team beaming at her.

'Well done,' she croaked. 'You all flew really well —'

'You did brilliantly, Ron!' Cried Hermione as she came down from the stands with Neville and Luna.

Ron looked extremely pleased with himself and even taller than usual as he grinned at the team and at Hermione.

After fixing the time of their first full practice for the following Thursday, Harri, Ron, and Hermione bade good-bye to the rest of the team, Neville and Luna, and headed off toward Hagrid's. On the way, Ron spoke endlessly about the tryouts and how he save every goal. Only Hermione was listening though, but one comment did spark Harri's attention.

'I was better than that McLaggen anyway,' said Ron in a highly satisfied voice. 'Did you see him lumbering off in the wrong direction on his fifth? Looked like he'd been Confunded. ...'

To Harri's surprise, Hermione turned a very deep shade of pink at these words. Ron noticed nothing; he was too busy describing each of his other penalties in loving detail.

When they arrived at Hagrid's hut, the great grey hippogriff, Buckbeak, was tethered in front of Hagrid's cabin. He clicked his razor-sharp beak at their approach and turned his huge head toward them.

'Oh dear,' said Hermione nervously. 'He's still a bit scary, isn't he?'

'Come off it, you've ridden him, haven't you?' said Ron as Harri stepped forward and bowed low to the hippogriff without breaking eye contact or blinking. After a few seconds, Buckbeak sank into a bow too.

'How are you?' Harri asked him in a low voice, moving forward to stroke the feathery head. 'You having fun being back here at Hogwarts?'

'Oi!' said a loud voice.

Hagrid had come striding around the corner of his cabin wearing a large flowery apron and carrying a sack of potatoes. His enormous boarhound, Fang, was at his heels; Fang gave a booming bark and bounded forward.

'Git away from him! He'll have yer fingers — oh. It's yeh lot.'

Fang was jumping up at Hermione and Ron, attempting to lick their ears. Hagrid stood and looked at them all for a split second, then turned and strode into his cabin, slamming the door behind him.

'Oh dear!' said Hermione, looking stricken.

'Don't worry about it,' said Harri grimly as she walked over to the door and knocked loudly. 'Hagrid! Open up, we want to talk to you!'

There was no sound from within.

'If you don't open the door, I'll blast it open!' Harri said, pulling out her wand.

'Harri!' said Hermione, sounding shocked. 'You can't possibly —'

'Sure I can!' said Harri. 'Stand back —'

But before she could say anything else, the door flew open again as Harri had known it would, and there stood Hagrid, glowering down at her and looking, despite the flowery apron, positively alarming.

'I'm a teacher!' he roared at Harry. "A teacher, Miss Dumbledore! How dare yeh threaten ter break down my door!'

'I'm sorry, _sir,_' said Harri, emphasizing the last word as she stowed her wand inside her robes.

Hagrid looked stunned. 'Since when do yeh call me "sir"?'

'Since when do you call me "Miss Dumbldore"?'

'Oh, very clever,' growled Hagrid. 'Very amusin'. That's me outsmarted, innit? All righ', come in then, yeh ungrateful little . . .'

Mumbling darkly, he stood back to let them pass. Hermione scurried in after Harri, looking rather frightened.

'Well?' said Hagrid grumpily, as Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat down around his enormous wooden table, Fang laying his head immediately upon Harri's knee and Harri automatically started to pat him.. 'What's this? Feelin' sorry for me? Reckon I'm lonely or summat?'

'No,' said Harri at once. 'We wanted to see you.'

'We've missed you!' Hermione added tremulously.

'Missed me, have yeh?' snorted Hagrid. 'Yeah. Righ'.'

'Hagrid,' said Hermione timidly, 'we really wanted to carry on with Care of Magical Creatures, you know.' Hagrid gave another great snort. 'We did!' said Hermione. 'But none of us could fit it into our schedules!'

'Yeah. Righ',' Hagrid said again.

Harri was about to open her mouth to make Hagrid see sense, but stop when she heard a funny squelching . Looking around, Harri noticed a large barrel standing in the corner which was full of what looked like foot-long maggots, slimy, white, and writhing.

Why do you have giant grubs, Hagrid?' asked Harri, trying to sound interested rather than revolted.

'I got 'em ter feed ter Aragog.' Hagrid answered before he suddenly burst into tears.

'Hagrid!' cried Hermione, leaping up, hurrying around the table the long way to avoid the barrel of maggots, and putting an arm around his shaking shoulders. 'What is it?'

'It's. . . him . ..' gulped Hagrid, his beetle-black eyes streaming as he mopped his face with his apron. 'It's . . . Aragog. ... I think he's dyin'. . . He got ill over the summer an' he's not gettin' better... I don' know what I'll do if he ... if he ... We've bin tergether so long. ...'

Hermione patted Hagrid's shoulder, looking at a complete loss for anything to say. Harri knew how she felt.

'Is there — is there anything we can do?' Hermione asked, ignoring Ron's frantic grimaces and head-shakings.

'I don' think there is, Hermione,' choked Hagrid, attempting to stem the flood of his tears. 'See, the rest o' the tribe ... Aragog's family . . . they're gettin' a bit funny now he's ill... bit restive ...'

'Yeah, I think we saw a bit of that side of them,' said Ron in an undertone.

'... I don' reckon it'd be safe fer anyone but me ter go near the colony at the mo',' Hagrid finished, blowing his nose hard on his apron and looking up. 'But thanks fer offerin', Hermione. ... It means a lot.'

'But still...Harri, what about your Pendant?' Hermione asked turning to Harri.

'I don't think it works on magical creatures, only wizards.' Harry replied sadly.

'Anyway, I always knew yeh'd find it hard ter squeeze me inter yer timetables,' Hagrid said gruffly. 'Even if yeh applied fer Time-Turners —'

'We couldn't have done,' said Hermione. 'We smashed the entire stock of Ministry Time-Turners when we were there last summer. It was in the Daily Prophet.'

'Ar, well then,' said Hagrid. 'There's no way yeh could've done it. ... I'm sorry I've bin — yeh know — I've jus' bin worried about Aragog ... an I did wonder whether, if Professor Grubbly-Plank had bin teachin' yeh —'

At which all three of them stated categorically and untruthfully that Professor Grubbly-Plank, who had substituted for Hagrid a few times, was a dreadful teacher, with the result that by the time Hagrid waved them off the premises at dusk, he looked quite cheerful.

'I'm starving,' said Harri, once the door had closed behind them and they were hurrying through the dark and deserted grounds.

As they came into the castle they spotted Cormac McLaggen entering the Great Hall. It took him two attempts to get through the doors; he ricocheted off the frame on the first attempt. Ron merely guffawed gloatingly and strode off into the Hall after him, but Harri caught Hermione's arm and held her back.

'What?' said Hermione defensively.

'If you ask me,' Harri said quietly, 'McLaggen looks like he was Confunded this morning. And he was standing right in front of where you were sitting.'

Hermione blushed.

'Oh, all right then, I did it,' she whispered. 'But you should have heard the way he was talking about Ron and Ginny! Anyway, he's got a nasty temper, you saw how he reacted when he didn't get in — you wouldn't have wanted someone like that on the team.'

'No,' admitted Harry. 'No, I suppose that's true. But wasn't that dishonest, Hermione? I mean, you're a prefect, aren't you?'

'Oh, be quiet,' she snapped, as she smirked.

'What are you two doing?' demanded Ron, reappearing in the doorway to the Great Hall and looking suspicious.

'Nothing,' said Harri and Hermione together, and they hurried after Ron. The smell of roast beef made Harri's stomach ache with hunger, but they had barely taken three steps toward the Gryffindor table, where Draco, Ginny, Luna and Neville were sitting, when Professor Slughorn appeared in front of them, blocking their path.

'Harri, Harri, just the young lady I was hoping to see!' he boomed genially, twiddling the ends of his walrus moustache and puffing out his enormous belly, 'I was hoping to catch you before dinner! What do you say to a spot of supper tonight in my rooms instead? We're having a little party, just a few rising stars, I've got McLaggen coming and Zabini, the charming Melinda Bobbin — I don't know whether you know her? Her family owns a large chain of apothecaries — and, of course, I hope very much that Miss Granger will favour me by coming too.'

Slughorn made Hermione a little bow as he finished speaking. It was as though Ron was not present; Slughorn did not so much as look at him.

'I can't come, Professor,' said Harry at once. 'I've got a detention with Uncle Sev.' Harri lied perfectly through her teeth, and ignoring the looks Hermione and Ron were giving her.

'Oh dear!' said Slughorn, his face falling comically. 'Dear, dear, I was counting on you, Harri! Well, now, I'll just have to have a word with Severus and explain the situation. I'm sure I'll be able to persuade him to postpone your detention. Yes, I'll see you both later!' He bustled away out of the Hall.

'I hope Uncle Sev covers for me,' Harri said nevously, the moment Slughorn was out of earshot

"Oh, come on Harri! Please come! I don't want to go on my own!" said Hermione anxiously; Harri knew that she was thinking about McLaggen.

'I doubt you'll be alone, Ginny'll probably be invited,' snapped Ron, who did not seem to have taken kindly to being ignored by Slughorn.

'What's wrong with you Ron?' Draco asked when the trio joined them at the table.

'He's just annoyed that Slughorn treated him as though he was there.' Answered Hermione. 'Ginny, were you invited to that supper party of Slughorn's?'

'Yes. I take it you and Harri were too,' replied Ginny.

'Yes, but Missy over here managed to get out of it, unless Sev wrecks her lie.' Hermione said, giving Harri an accusing look.

'I have better things to do with my time then to go to one of his parties!' Harri said.

'What? Spend time making googly eyes at Draco?' Laughed Neville.

'No! And I do not make googly eyes at him!' Harri replied, turning pink.

'Yes you do sweet heart.' Said Severus, walking up behind her. 'Now what have I given you a detention for?'

'I just made that up so I wouldn't have to go to Slughorn's party. Please tell me you didn't blow my cover.' Harri added urgently.

'I didn't give it away, but you will have to come home at eight-fifteen or at least hide from Slughorn for the rest of the night.' Said Severus.

'I can do that!'

'All right. I'll see you later.'

* * *

**Please Review!**

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**A/N: It was brought to my attention that when I was describing the half-blood prince's meaning in the last chapter, it was probably every confusing. For those who were confused, I have written a brief description to explain everything below:**

_**Yes, Severus is Albus and Minerva's son and James' twin, but when he was at school he was known as a Snape! So those who knew him as Snape would have known that he was a half-blood (those close to him anyway)and that the person that they thought was his mother was a Prince. Severus wrote that in the diary as a double meaning. In one life he is the Prince of the wizarding world and in his life as Snape, he was a half-blood related to the princes.**_

_**Did this help? Or have I just made it worse? If you need me to explain it in a different way, please let me know! :D**_

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**Written: 23 July 2011**


	5. Balls and Curses

**CHAPTER FIVE: BALLS AND CURSES**

With the upcoming Ball now less than a week away, the Hogsmeade weekends were becoming more and more popular with everyone picking up last minute things for their costumes. Most of the time, Harri and her friends wondered why they actually bothered going seeing as it wasn't a pleasant experience with girls running around picking up bits and pieces with their boyfriends walking sulkingly behind them carrying their shopping bags. However, apart from all that, they always managed to have a good time in the end.

On the Hogsmeade visit, before the Ball, something unexpected happened, that made the friends trip one of the worst trips they had ever had.

The weekend started like any other weekend. In the morning, the friends would complete any homework or work on any assignments they had, before they would go down to the Great Hall for lunch. After that, they would go down to Hogsmeade for the afternoon.

These days it took a long time to get to the village seeing as everyone had to stand in line waiting to be checked with a Secrecy Sensor to check that they weren't smuggling any dark artefacts in or out of the school. Not that it made sense, as Draco pointed out, to why they had to be checked to see if they were smuggling anything out. After all, how would they have managed to smuggle it in to Hogwarts in the first place?

Anyway, on this weekend trip, the group of friends first went in to Honeydukes to stock up on sweets to help them study. It was in this shop that Harri met someone that she had been trying to avoid.

'Harri, my dear!' Came Slughorn's joyful voice.

Harri groaned, before turning around to face Slughorn with a big, fake cheerful smile on her face.

'Hi Professor!' Harri said, with a painful smile on her face.

'Harri, that's three of my little suppers you've missed now! It won't do. I'm determined to have you come! Miss Granger loves them, don't you?' Said Slughorn.

'Yes, there really nice.' Hermione said helplessly.

'So why don't you come along?' Slughorn demanded.

'Unfortunately I've had Quidditch practice on those nights.' Harri replied, pretending to be apologetic. She had purposely made the practices on the nights the suppers had been, much to Hermione's dismay.

'With all the hard work you've been putting into the team, I would be greatly surprised if Gryffindor doesn't win, but a little recreation never hurt anyone.' Pressed Slughorn. 'So, how about Monday night?'

'Alas, I've got a meeting with Grandfather.' Harri answered, mentally thanking Albus.

'Unlucky again!' Slughorn cried dramatically, which resulted in a few customers, turning to look at them. 'Ah, well...you can evade me forever, Harrietta Dumbledore!' He added, before giving a wave and waddling out of the store, taking no notice of Neville, Ron, Luna and Draco. It was as though they had been part of one of the displays.

'Actually, I can evade you forever...hopefully.' Harri grumbled, leaning up again Draco.

'I can't believe you got out of another one!' Exclaimed Hermione. 'You know, they aren't that bad. They have actually been quite fun.'

'Its fun listening to Slughorn go on about all the famous and well connect people he knows?' Neville questioned innocently, making Draco, Harri and Ron snort with laughter.

'He doesn't always go on about that stuff.' Hermione argued before turning her attention elsewhere, ignoring the look that Ron was giving her.

After they had purchased all the sweets that they wanted, the group of six headed to the Three Broomsticks.

When they arrived they took their usually seats and ordered some butterbeer.

'So, you ready for the upcoming game against Slytherin?' Draco asked Harri, before taking a sip of his drink.

'Ready as ever! I can't wait to kick their butts...again.' Harri said, forgetting that Draco was a Slytherin, though it didn't really matter. Draco normally went for Gryffindor regardless of his house.

'You betcha! I think we've got one of the best teams out there!' Said Neville.

'Well, you definitely have the best Seeker in the school.' Draco said, smiling down at Harri. 'Which reminds me, you might want to beware of Slytherins before the game.'

'Why?' Asked a bewildered Harri.

'The Slytherins were all talking last night about ways they could win again you and which players are their greatest threat and they came to the conclusion that you are their greatest threat and that they should find away to get rid of you before the game.' Answered Draco.

Harri shook her head at how low Slytherin would go to win, before turning back to Draco frowning slightly. 'How do you know this anyway? Surely they didn't say this while you were in the room.'

'They did do it while I was in the room. They didn't see me sitting in the corner of the room reading.' Draco said casually.

'You'd think that they would have checked to see that you weren't around.' Harri said shaking her head.

Draco shrugged.

'So Ron, you ready for the upcoming game?...What are you looking at?' Draco asked, turning to look in the same direction that Ron was looking in.

'Nothing.' Ron answered quickly...too quickly in fact.

'Obviously you were looking at something.' Draco said curiously.

'Draco, "nothing"'s in the back getting more Firewhisky,' Hermione said waspishly.

'Madam Rosmerta,' Draco said, catching on.

'Well, you can keep your eyes off her, Ron. She's mine.' Came a joking voice.

'Sirius!' Exclaimed Harri, before jumping into her godfathers arms. 'I haven't seen you in ages!'

'I know. It's such a pain, isn't it?' Sirius said, being half serious.

'Hi Remus,' added Harri, catching slight of the other Maunder, before going over and giving him a hug too.

'Hi Harri.' Remus said, before Harri went and took her seat again and Remus and Sirius drawing up two more seats.

'What are you too doing here?' Asked Hermione.

'I thought that I'd come and see my goddaughter, plus we had to go and see Albus for most of the morning.' Answered Sirius.

'What about?' Asked Ron.

'Order stuff.' Shrugged Sirius.

'Let me guess, you can tell us.' Said Ron grumpily.

'Correct. Severus and Molly would be after my blood if I told ya's.' Sirius said.

'Not wanting to change the subject but what was that you were saying about Madam Rosmerta?' Asked Harri.

'I was joking! I'm not interested in older women!' Sirius answered truthfully. 'Even though some women are interested in older men in their thirties.' Sirius added, looking at Remus out the corner of his eye.

'I think that I'll go get some more drinks.' Remus said quickly, hoping to his feet and going over to Madam Rosmerta to order them.

'Tonks still having no luck?' Harri asked sadly.

'You got it on the first guess. Remus is arguing that he's too old, poor and is using the werewolf excuse. Plus he's been avoiding her.' Sirius replied.

'Um, are we missing something here?' Asked Hermione.

'Tonks likes Remus.' Harri said simply.

'And Remus likes Tonks, though he would never admit it out loud.' Added Sirius, glancing over to Remus who was talking with Madam Rosmerta.

'They'll get together...eventually.' Harri said confidently.

'If you say so.' Muttered Sirius as Remus came back over. 'I thought you said that you were getting drinks?' He added, when Remus sat down.

'Rosmerta's bringing them over for us.' Said Remus. 'So how's school been?'

'Same old same old. School work, classes, homework and more homework.' Answered Neville.

'What about Quidditch? When's the first game?' Sirius asked eagerly.

'In two weeks time.' Hermione answered promptly.

'And how's our Captain been?'

'She's brilliant!' Ginny said, walking over to them with Dean. 'I know that we'll win for sure! Anyway, I thought I'd come over and say hi to the two of you. Okay, see you later.' Ginny said, before walking off again with Dean.

'Now that was brief,' said Neville, looking over to where Ginny and Dean had walked off to.

'She probably noticed the look Ron was giving Dean.' Luna said casually.

'Oh, Ron. What have you got against Dean anyway?' Hermione asked resignedly.

'Nothing, when his not touching my sister.' Ron said darkly.

'Well, isn't Harri like your sister? You don't get all thingy when she's kissing Draco.' Hermione said pointedly. Ron had no answer, and he was saved from answering when Madam Rosmerta walked over with their drinks.

'Here you go guys.' She said, putting a tray of butterbeer in front of them. 'Sirius Black, long time no see.' She added, catching sight of Sirius. 'It's good to see you again.'

'You to, Rosmerta.' Sirius said, nodding to her as she walked away.

The rest of the afternoon the group sat there talking about Quidditch, Hogwarts, the Ball and many other things, but eventually, Harri and her friends had to reluctantly say goodbye and head back to school. This was when the unexpected happened.

As the group of friends were heading back to school, Harri became aware of angry arguing voices, and she soon discovered that it was coming from Katie Bell and her friend Leanne.

'It's got nothing to do with you, Leanne!' Katie said angrily, moving the package in her hands out of Leanne's reach.

'You don't even know what's in it! What if it's something dark or dangerous?' Leanne argued desperately, before lunging at the package to get it away from her friend. The moment she grabbed hold of it, Katie ripped it the package back out of Leanne's grip and, as a result, the package ripped. Next minute the package fell to the ground and Katie rose gracefully into the air, before letting out terrible ear-piercing scream. Leanne, Harri, Hermione, Luna, Draco, Neville and Ron all looked on helplessly and when Katie began to fall back to earth, Draco hurried forward to catch her. When he caught her, he lowered her carefully to the group where she laid thrashing and screaming.

'I'm going for help.' Harri said quickly, before sprinting off towards Hogwarts. When she got near the gate she saw Severus and Aurora about to enter the grounds.

'UNCLE SEV!' Harri yelled, running over to them.

'Harri, what's wrong?' Severus demanded, when he caught sight of her unusually pale and worried face.

'It's Katie Bell. She's been cursed or something.' Harri explained before running back off with Aurora and Severus to the scene.

Well they arrived back; they saw that Leanne and Harri's friends were trying desperately to calm Katie.

Severus quickly went and knelt down beside the thrashing Katie, taking in everything, before he gently picked her up and hurried back up to the school with her, while Aurora walked over to the sobbing and frightened Leanne.

'It's Leanne, isn't it?'

Leanne nodded.

'Something's happened to her!' Leanne sobbed. 'I don't know what, but I know it happened when the package tore!' She added, nodding to the brown-paper package on the ground which had split open to reveal a greenish glitter.

As Harri bent down to have a closer look, Draco quickly pulled her back away from it. His face was pale and he was shaking slightly with an unreadable expression on his face.

'It's a cursed necklace.' Draco said unsteadily.

'How do you know that, Draco?' Asked Luna.

'I've seen it in Borgin and Burkes.' Was all Draco said.

'You're right. I've seen it before too!' Harri said thoughtfully. 'But if that's the case, who on earth did Katie get hold of it?'

'That's the reason we were arguing. She came back from the bathroom at the Three Broomsticks holding that package, saying that it was a surprise for someone at Hogwarts and that she needed to deliver it, though she didn't seem to be herself when she said it.' Leanne said, sobbing into Aurora's shoulder.

'That being the case, I think that we should all get back up to the school and see how Katie is doing.' Aurora said firmly, but gently.

Harri nodded and bent down, rapping the cursed necklace in her scarf, before following Aurora and the others back up to the school.

When they arrived back up at the school Minerva was waiting anxiously for them and the moment they arrived she ushered them all to her office, where Severus was waiting restlessly.

'Uncle Sev,' Harri said, walking over to her uncle. 'This is the object that Katie touched.'

Severus took the scarf off Harri and placed it carefully on Minerva's desk to examine it.

'I need you to explain what happened,' asked Minerva, while Severus examined the necklace.

Slowly, Leanne explained everything what happen, before she burst out into tears.

'Thank you Leanne. Aurora, would you please be able to Leanne up to the Hospital wing and get Poppy to give her something for the shock.

'Of course,' Aurora said promptly, before steering Leanne out of the room.

'Is it always you three, when trouble happens?' Minerva asked warily, looking at Harri, Hermione and Ron.

'Wrong place at the wrong time?' Harri suggested. 'Do think Katie will be alright?'

'Hopefully,' muttered Severus. 'All I can say is that she is lucky to be alive. There must have been a small hole in her glove.'

'The six of you can leave.' Minerva added to Harri and her friends.

'I wonder who Katie was meant to give the necklace to.' Hermione said the moment they were away from Minerva's office.

'I don't know, but whoever it is, they'd better watch their back.' Said Neville, nervously.

'I think he would have gone to someone important.' Said Luna, thoughtfully. 'Like Albus.'

'Yeah, the Death Eaters would love to get him out of the way.' Said Ron.

'True, but it could have also been for Slughorn.' Argued Harri.

'Why would Slughorn be a target?' Draco asked. He was still a bit pale.

'Grandfather reckons Voldemort really wanted him and they weren't pleased when he sided with the light.' Explained Harri. 'Or it could have been for -'

'You,' Hermione said, looking suddenly troubled.

'I highly doubt it, Hermione. I'm guessing that necklace was from a Death Eater or Voldemort. Voldemort and I have a truce and he isn't about to break it. As for the Death Eaters, they wouldn't dare attack me; otherwise they would feel the wrath of my entire family.' Harri said lightly.

'Harri, you can be so naive sometimes. How do you know that He will stick to the truce? He could just be trying to gain your trust then attack when you least expect it!' Hermione argued.

'If there's one thing I know is that he is a man of his word, and once he gives his word he will not break it.' Harri said coldly.

As Hermione opened her mouth, to no doubt argue back, Draco intervened which the friends thought was brave...or foolish.

'Harri's right, Hermione. I can't back her up with the Dark Lord keeping his word, but I can back her up when she says that it wouldn't have been for her.'

'And how do you know that?' Asked Ron.

'Katie would have given it to Harri in the lane if it had been for her. After all, it makes more sense to deliver it outside Hogwarts.' Draco reasoned.

No one could argue with his reasoning.

* * *

During the week, Katie was sent to St Mungo's for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Harri learnt this during her "lesson" with Albus where she learnt about Voldemort's childhood. It turned out that he was an obedient and well behaved son, until he enter his sixth year. Why he changed, Minerva and Albus didn't know, but it was his sixth year that he became dangerous and obsessed with power.

It was turning this time that the news of what happened to Katie had spread across the entire school and everyone was alert and worried that they might be the next target, but when the day of the Ball arrived, Katie and everything else was pushed out of everyone's minds.

Harri, Hermione, Ginny and Luna all had a girl's day, with Aurora in Aurora's quarters (even though she spent most of her time in Severus'). Draco, Ron and Neville were doing the same thing with Severus in Severus' quarters. None of them had the slightest idea of what their partners would look like.

It took the girls a few hours to get ready, with them having difficult hairstyles, and having to do their make-up and everything. At five-fifty, the boys had assembled themselves in Aurora's living room, waiting for the girls to come out of the bedroom.

Severus was wearing a striped dark blue and white Pharaoh's headdress with a brown coloured robe with a purple and blue collar and white material around it. Around his waist was a sash that matched his collar and it had Egyptian symbols on it. In his hand he carried some sort of septa. He wore no shoes. Ron was wearing a long white shirt with a bluey-purple vest over the top. He had brown pants on and long black boots. On his head sat a golden crown. Draco, on the other hand, decided not to bother with a crown and he was wearing a white jacket with golden cuffs, a maroon belt, golden buttons, golden collar and a golden sash. His pants were also maroon with golden trimming down the side. He was also wearing black shoes and a medal on his jacket. Neville had followed Draco's example and had ditched the crown. The only way to describe Neville's costume was to say that he was dressed as a Peter Pan with blue wings.

'Oh good, your here.' Said Ginny, walking out of the bedroom.

'Wow...Ginny.' Said Ron, taking in his sister's costume.

Ginny had dyed the top of her head black that leaked into her flaming red hair. She wore a golden crown with enchanted flames coming out the top with a red gem in the middle. She was also wearing a boob-tube dress that was black up the top, with a golden pattern on it, which ended up turning a dark red down the bottom. All the jewellery she wore was golden and to finish off the outfit, she had a black, see-through shawl draped over her shoulders.

Before anyone could comment anymore on Ginny's costume, Luna walked out gracefully.

Luna was also wearing a boob-tube dress, only instead of being red and black; it was a gorgeous light pink, with a brown vine belt around her waist and a vine of flowers holding the dress up. Her blonde hair was curly and cascaded down her back. On top of her head was a thin golden band with flowers either side of it. Gone was the radish earrings and charmed necklace, instead her necklace was made up of entirely of small pink flowers and her earrings matched. She also wore a white flower on both her wrists, ribbon going off her upper arms and a great big pair of dark pink fairy wings on her back.

The boys couldn't help but gap at Luna. Normally she wore strange outfits that were out of this world, that nobody in her right mind would wear, but tonight...she looked normal and gorgeous. In fact, she looked like a really life fairy.

Aurora and Hermione walked out next, laughing. As soon as Severus saw Aurora, he stood up a little straighter and his smile widened. Aurora was wearing a pure white dress with a dark purple shawl wrapped around it attached to it. Around her middle she had a sash similar to Severus' on. Her dress was held up by a thin strip of material that was attacked to a fabric necklace of sorts. She had also straightened her black hair with a golden crown and golden streaks through her hair. She was wearing golden high heeled shoes. She said that there was no way she would walk around the castle bare footed.

Hermione on the other hand was wearing a dark pink shirt with three-quarter, see-through sleeves. The shirt had a flower and vine pattern on it. Underneath the shirt, Hermione had a tight long sleeved shirt on in a matching colour. She was wearing a matching skirt with a brown belt around her waist and matching brown shoes. Her hair was that curly that it only came to her shoulders and on top of her head was a golden crown and around her neck was a golden necklace.

'You look beautiful,' Severus muttered in Aurora's ear, while he hugged her around the waist.

'You don't look too bad yourself,' Aurora replied quietly.

'Where's Harri?' Asked Draco.

'She was putting on her dress when we left,' answered Hermione.

'Why's she so late at getting ready?' Asked Severus.

'She was doing all our make-up and hair.' Answered Luna.

'Yeah well, I'm here now.' Came Harri's voice from the hall.

The group looked over to the hall and saw Harri walking gracefully towards them.

Harri was also wearing a light pink dress that looked like a boob-tube dress at first glance that flowed elegantly to the ground. A thin golden cord hung from her neck holding up her dress. A dark pink belt hung from her hips. Her midnight black hair was in loose buns either side of her hair with hair hanging out down the side of her face. She wore a golden tiara on her forehead and as usual, she was wearing the Pendant Draco gave her and the bracelet Voldemort had given her for her birthday.

'Uncle Sev, if your mouth opens any more, a spider will make a web inside.' Harri said, frowning slightly at the look Severus was giving her. 'Why are you looking at me like that anyway?'

'You're wearing pink.' Severus said in disbelief.

'Aren't you observant?' Chuckled Harri.

'Sorry, but the last time I saw you in pink would have been your first birthday!'

'I thought I'd be different. I can't wear green, black, blue, teal and red all the time, can I now?' Harri said, leading Draco towards the exit.

Harri enjoyed the night with her friends, and was starting to think that this was the best night of her life, and not just because she was having fun. No, she thought it was the best cause Draco was smiling happily again. He was joking, laughing and smiling a true smile, a smile Harri hadn't seen in months. Anyway, that night would have been the best...if she hadn't of ran into her grandparents.

'Hello, sweet heart, Draco. Having a good time?' Asked Albus.

'The very best, thank you.' Answered Draco.

'It's nice to see that your wearing something different for a change, Harri.' Commented Minerva. 'Though, it's no surprise that you are still wearing Alvara's Pendant, but why are you wearing that golden and ruby bracelet? It doesn't really go. Where did you get it from, anyway?' She added.

Harri tensed right up and paled. Maybe she could tell part of the truth?

'My uncle,' replied Harri.

'Sev gave you that?' Albus asked suspiciously. 'It looks Indian. Sev hasn't been to India lately. Actually, I don't think he's been there at all. So how...' Albus suddenly stopped and looked down at Harri sternly. 'You're not talking about Sev, are you?'

'No,' came a quiet reply.

'Harrietta Dumbledore! How could you accept something like that off Tom? How did you get that off him anyway?' Demanded Albus.

'I've been seeing him every now and then. Going to his place for dinner some nights.'

'Well that's stopping right now.' Minerva said firmly. 'And on top of that, you are ground for a month!'

'What!'

'You heard me, Harrietta. No more dates, no more spending time with your friends either. You go to your classes then you come straight home, do your homework and go to bed, unless you have Quidditch or your uncle, grandfather or myself needs you.' Minerva said.

'And hand over that bracelet, this instance!' Albus added.

'No, I won't! You can stop me from spending time with my uncle!' Harri yelled angrily, before running out of the Hall with Draco hot on her heels.

* * *

'How _dare_ they say that and do that!' Harri yelled furiously, once inside Severus' lounge room. 'Uncle Tom hasn't tried to hurt me in ages! And grounding me for a month while I'm at school! I hate it! I hate them!'

'Harri,' Draco said gently, pulling her down onto the couch next to him. 'You have to look at it from their point of view. They're just worried about you. Yes, I admit that the groundment was unnecessary and that it was embarrassing to have that argument in front of most of the school,' he added quickly, when Harri opened her mouth angrily, ' but you have to keep it in perspective how they must feel.'

'I know, that doesn't mean that I like it!' Harri sobbed into Draco's chest.

Two hours later, Severus and Aurora came back from the Ball.

'Harri? Are you here?' Called Severus, having just learnt of the argument she just had with his parents.

'Maybe she's in the Slytherin common room with Draco,' suggested Aurora as she turned on the lights.

'Or maybe she's sleep on the couch in a sleeping Draco's arms.' Said Severus, having spotted the sleeping couple. 'It looks like she fell asleep crying.' He said sadly, before he conjured a blanked and covered the young couple, before going with Aurora to bed.

* * *

**Please Review.**

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**A/N: Back at uni, updates will seemingly stop until I get time to write more. **

**Pictures of the Ball costumes are on facebook.**

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**Written: 31 July 2011**


	6. Quidditch, Dramas and Christmas

**CHAPTER SIX: QUIDDITCH, DRAMAS AND CHRISTMAS**

The next morning, Harri woke to the quiet talking of her uncle and future aunt as they made breakfast. Harri kept her eyes tightly closed and snuggled into her warm pillow. She didn't want to awaken, not after what happened last night. She felt humiliated due to that argument with her family last night in front of everyone. How would people react to her now that they knew she was seeing the Dark Lord Voldemort every now and then? Would they believe she was becoming evil like him? Is that why her grandparent's didn't want her anywhere near Voldemort? Was it like Mad-Eye said last year at Saint Mungo's? Either way, as much as it pained her, she would do as Draco suggested and respect her grandparent's wishes and not see him - at least for the time being. A part of her knew that he was not as he seemed. A part of her knew that there was more to him becoming the Dark Lord than anyone knew. If only others would be as understanding.

Sighing, Harri decided that she might as well wake up and face whatever her family had to say to her. Opening her eyes, she saw that she had fallen asleep in Draco's arms and Draco was currently fast asleep. As she looked at him, she saw that he looked so exhausted that he probably could sleep forever. She also noticed that he seemed troubled, and she felt bad and selfish. She had ranted on last night and cried about that one argument with her grandparents, when something much bigger seemed to be happening to Draco. Something he couldn't confide in anyone about, not even her.

'Nice to see that you finally decided to join the living,' chuckled Severus, upon seeing that she was awake. 'We thought that you were going to sleep all day, though it looks like Draco might.'

'What time is it?' Yawned Harri as she gently dispatched herself from Draco's arms. She didn't want to wake him.

'One o'clock,' answered Aurora. 'Would you like some lunch?'

'Yes please,' muttered Harri, sitting down next to Severus. 'I take it you heard what happened last night?' She added.

'Yes,' replied Severus simply.

'Do you think that I should do as Grandmother and Grandfather said? To never go anywhere near him, ever again?' Harri asked, dreading her uncle's answer.

'Harri, next year you will legally be classified as an adult, but in my eyes, you are already a young adult. And as such, you are old enough and mature enough to make your own decisions.' Severus answered hesitantly.

'You didn't answer my question,' accused Harri as Aurora put a sandwich in front of her.

'Honestly Harri, I don't think I'm the right person to be asking,' said Severus.

'Why not? You know him the best! You're his brother and he confines in you, doesn't he?' Harri argued.

'Not always, Harri. Besides, no one knows him. No one knows what goes through his mind or what he plans. And as for the fact of me being his brother, that just makes me blind. Blinded by my love for him, my fear of him and my anger for what he did to my twin, Lily and you. I am as bias and blind as your grandparents. Though while I am more blinded by love, they are blinded by hate and anger.' Severus said grimly, before sighing and looking Harri straight in the eyes. 'Harri, follow your instinct and don't become blind like the rest of us.'

Harri nodded and took a bit of her sandwich.

'Will you be able to tell him what happened last night?' Harri asked after a while. 'And tell him that I want to respect their wishes - at least for the time been?'

'I will.'

They ate the rest of their lunch in silence, before turning their attention to Draco who had started to awaken.

'Afternoon,' Harri said quietly as she sat down on the couch next to him.

'Wow, is it really afternoon,' yawned Draco as he sat up.

'Yes,' smiled Harri, leaning over and giving him a morning kiss.

'Would you like something to eat, Draco?' Aurora asked, moving over to the kitchen. 'Sandwich? Porridge? Toast? Cereal? Anything?'

'No thanks, Aurora. I'll grab something to eat later.' Draco said, getting to his feet and stretching some more. 'Anyway, I should be off. I've got some work to do.'

'But...you've completed all your homework,' frowned Harri.

'I know, but this isn't school work. See you around,' Draco said, before leaving.

They all watched as he headed to the exit and as he went to open the door, it opened automatically and Albus and Minerva entered. They looked surprised to see Draco there still dressed in last night's attire. Draco gave them a quick smile and left.

'Afternoon Mother, Father,' greeted Severus. 'Would you like some tea or coffee?'

'No thank you, Sev. We've actually have come to speak to Harri,' answered Albus, turning his attention to Harri.

Harri looked at them for a moment, before saying rudely, 'Well you will have to wait. I'm going to have a shower and get ready for what's left of the day, Uncle Sev.' Then left without another word, leaving the adults gaping at her.

'She's really angry with us, isn't she?' Minerva asked sadly.

'I'm going to be completely honest with you,' said Severus. 'She's fuming. She hates you for what you said to her in front of everyone. She's not going to forgive you that easily. You humiliated her. If you had taken a different approach, she wouldn't be acting like this. She is willing to accept your wishes, though.'

'What do you suggest we do then,' asked Minerva, staring down the hall as she heard the sound of running water from the bathroom.

'Un-ground her,' suggested Aurora.

'I agree with Aurora. I think the groundment was too harsh. Is it so bad that a young lady wants to know her father's older brother?' Severus asked.

'You both are right of course,' smiled Albus. 'Since when did you two know so much about raising a teenager?'

'We listen,' answered Aurora. 'Plus it also helps when you're surrounded by teenagers every day.'

They sat in silence waiting for Harri to emerge. Ten minutes later, she did.

'Okay, I'm ready for the lecture,' sighed Harri, sitting down on the couch.

Minerva and Albus exchanged a look.

'Harri, we realise that we were perhaps a little harsh,' began Albus, ignoring Harri's raised eyebrows at the "perhaps a little harsh" part. 'Anyway, as long as you promise to not to go anywhere near Voldemort, we are willing to un-ground you.'

Harri was silent for a moment before she said, 'Deal.'

* * *

It turned out that Harri had been worrying about her school mates reactions for no reason. Those who had heard the family's argument just shrugged it off. They knew that Harri would never join the Dark Lord and those that had heard about the argument thought the same thing. How could Harrietta Dumbledore ever be evil and dark? In actual fact, everything was as it normal was. The Slytherins were being jerks to Harri and her friends as usual, Slughorn was still trying to get Harri to come to one of his parties, and Draco was still mysteriously disappearing. However, Harri didn't have time to worry about it at the current point in time. Currently, she had Ron telling her that he was going to resign after their upcoming game against Slytherin. No matter what she told him, Ron would stubbornly reply that he was pathetic. Harri was running out of ideas to make him see sense...that was until she was searching for her potions textbook, and she came across a certain little potion. She stared at and while she did, a plan started to form in mind. If she timed her plan just right...

The day of the big Quidditch match came and Ron was as glum as ever. He sat at the Gryffindor table picking absently at his breakfast. Nothing anyone said could change his mood and thoughts.

'Morning everyone,' Harri greeted as she took her seat next to Ron. 'Ron, are you alright? Have you eaten anything?'

'No,' muttered Ron.

'Well, if you're not going to eat, at least have something to drink,' said a firm Harri, when she noticed that he didn't have a drink in front of him. 'So, what do you want? Tea, coffee or pumpkin juice?'

'I don't care,' muttered Ron. 'It's not like it's going to help.'

'You never know what a drink can do,' said Harri as she put a glass of pumpkin juice in front of Ron. 'Now, make sure you drink it.' She added, when Ron just stared at the drink.

Ron turned to look at Harri before picking up the goblet to drink his drink, but before he put the glass to his lips...

'Ron, don't drink that!' Said a shocked, yet sharp Hermione.

'Why?' Asked Neville as they all turned to look at her, but she only had eyes for Harri. She was staring at her as though she had never seen Harri before.

'Hermione? What's wrong?' Asked Ginny, looking between her two friends. Hermione had a look of disbelief while Harri looked confused. 'Hermione?'

Hermione ignored her.

'You just put something in Ron's drink!' She said to Harri.

'What are you talking about, Hermione?' Asked a confused Harri.

'Oh don't try and deny it, Harri. I saw you. You tripped something into Ron's drink!'

'Seriously, Hermione. I have no idea what you are on about,' said Harri, while Ron just shook his head and drunk the cold pumpkin juice.

'I - I can't believe you did that, Harri! What you just did is illegal, even for a princess!'

'Hermione, I did nothing illegal. Come on Ginny, Ron. Let's get down to the Quidditch pitch.' Harri said, leading the way out of the Hall as the Slytherins booed and taunted them. Harri yawned at the taunts and boos.

'Beautiful flying conditions today, don't you agree?' Ginny said brightly as they exited the castle.

'Yeah. That is pretty luck, especially with the weather ever had lately,' muttered Ron.

'I'd say what's even luckier,' began Harri as they arrived at their changing room. 'Vaisey won't be playing today.'

'Vaisey? As in the Chaser? Why isn't he playing?' Asked Demelza, who was already in her Quidditch gear.

'He took a Bludger to his head in their practice last night. He told Uncle Sev that he was too sore to play today,' replied Harri.

'We are so winning this game! Good weather and Slytherins best goal scorer out...how lucky are we!' Exclaimed a very happy Ginny, before walking off to get changed.

'It is lucky, isn't it?' Ron said to Harri as she emptied her pockets and put a small bottle of golden liquid on the table in front of them. The bottle wasn't full. 'Is that - you didn't! That's why Hermione was acting the way she did! Harri, how could you? If we get caught...'

'Ron, I haven't the faintest idea of what you are talking about,' said Harri. 'You should go get changed,' she added, before walking off to get changed.

Regardless of Zacharias Smith taunts and insults as he commentated the match - Harri often wondered how he was sorted into Hufflepuff - Gryffindor was still able to smash Slytherin. Ginny scored goal after goal, while Ron saved goal after goal, and when Harri eventually catch the snitch, Ginny got her revenge by flying straight into Smith. Due to their marvellous victory, most of the Gryffindors hurried back to the Gryffindor common room to celebrate - only Ron, Hermione and Harri took their time.

'I still can't believe you did that,' said a stern Hermione, the moment Harri walked out of the changing room. Ron was standing next to her.

'Honestly, what are you talking about?' Harri asked innocently.

'You know perfectly well what I am talking about! You spiked Ron's drink with Felix Felicis this morning!'

'No I didn't,' smiled Harri, showing them the bottle. It was still corked and sealed. 'Slughorn didn't give me a full bottle, so I was able to make it look like I had used it. I wanted Ron to think I'd done it, so I faked it when I knew you were looking.' She looked at Ron. 'You saved everything because you felt lucky. You did it all yourself. You still think that you play like a sack of dung or whatever it was that you compared yourself to?'

'No, you're the best captain ever, Harri.' Laughed Ron.

'I sure that there are better captains than me,' smiled a modest Harri. 'Come on, let's go and enjoy the celebrations.'

The celebrations were alright, Harri had to admit, but she would have liked them better if the Creevey brothers hadn't wanted a blow-by-blow match analysis or if she didn't have younger boys coming over to her and trying to ask her out. She hoped that Draco didn't find out, not that she was worried that he would do something stupid, but he still might send a jinx or two their way. Once Harri had finally escaped - or as she called it, excused herself - from the boys, she walked over to join Dean and Ginny.

'Having fun?' Dean asked sarcastically, referring to the younger boys.

'Loads. Have you seen Ron or Hermione?' Harri replied.

'Hermione, last time I looked, was talking to Neville and Luna, and Ron is over there,' answered Ginny, pointing over to her brother - who looked like he was eating Lavender Brown's face - with much disgust.

'Right...Seeing as Ron doesn't look like he will be surfacing anytime soon, I'm off to find Hermione,' said Harri.

She hoped that Hermione hadn't seen Ron yet, but she knew that Hermione had the moment she heard Neville yelling out Hermione's name worriedly as she ran out the portrait hole. Sighing sadly, Harri ran after her, into a deserted classroom.

'Hermione? Are you alright?' Harri asked quietly, already knowing the answer.

'Who me? Yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?' Hermione said quickly, trying to hide her tears.

'Hermione, I know that you saw Ron and Lavender,' Harri said gently, walking over and engulfing her in a comforting hug.

'Is it that obvious as to why I'm upset?' Hermione muttered.

'Yes, but that might be because you told me how you felt about him.'

'Well, not like it matters now! He clearly doesn't feel the same way about me! And I was so stupid to think that we could be more than just friends!'

'That's not true, Hermione. Besides, I highly doubt their so called "relationship" will last. I sure -'

Whatever Harri was sure about, Hermione did not know, for at that moment, Ron and Lavender came laughing into the room, hand-in-hand.

'Oh, hi Harri, Hermione - what's wrong?' Ron asked, catching sight of Hermione's tear stained face, and the fresh tears pouring down her face.

'Nothing,' muttered Hermione, before she pushed passed them and ran off outside.

'What's wrong with Hermione, Harri?' Asked Lavender.

'It's not my place to say,' replied Harri. 'I better go and find her. You two have, er, fun?' Harri said awkwardly, before hurrying off after Hermione.

* * *

After that night, Ron and Hermione were barely in the same room for more than a few seconds, unless it involved class. Though Harri had to admit that she would have preferred to be in Hermione's shoes since she was able to escape being around Ron and Lavender as they tried to eat each other's faces - at least, that's what it looked like to Harri. She really hoped that she didn't look like that when she kissed Draco. She was that worried that she ended up asking her friends.

'Harri, when you and Draco kiss, it looks romantic. We would actually prefer to have you and Draco sitting with us kissing.' Sighed Ginny, leaning against Dean.

'But why would Draco and I do that in public? It's just not -right.' Said a confused Harri.

'Can you tell those two that then?' Muttered Neville, looking down the Gryffindor table where Ron and Lavender looked like they were glued together.

'I did try,' admitted Harri. In fact that wasn't the only thing she tried. She had also tried to get Ron to talk to Hermione, but that hadn't worked to well. 'Hi Parvati,' she added, when she moved over to join them.

'Hi,' she replied, looking slightly embarrassed at her best friend's behaviour.

'How are you? You're staying at Hogwarts, then? I heard your parents wanted you to leave.' Said Harri, making polite conversation.

'I managed to talk them out of it for the time being,' said Parvati. 'That Katie thing really freaked them out, but as there hasn't been anything since... Oh, hi, Hermione!' She added as Hermione joined them.

'Hi, Parvati!' said Hermione, ignoring Ron and Lavender completely. 'Are you going to Slughorn's party tonight?'

'Not invited,' said Parvati gloomily. 'I'd love to go though; it sounds like it's going to be really good... You're going, aren't you?'

'Yes, I'm meeting Cormac at eight, and we're -'

There was a noise like a plunger being withdrawn from a blocked sink, and Ron surfaced. Hermione acted as though she had not seen or heard anything, while the others made disgusted faces. Did they honestly have to do that while they were eating?

'- we're going up to the party together.'

'Cormac?' said Parvati. 'Cormac McLaggen, you mean?'

'That's right,' said Hermione sweetly. 'The one who _almost_' - she put a great deal of emphasis on the word - 'became Gryffindor Keeper.'

'Are you going out with him, then?' asked Parvati, wide-eyed.

'Oh - yes - didn't you know?' said Hermione, with a most un-Hermione-ish giggle, making her friends stare, and Draco to look at her worriedly when he stopped behind Harri.

'No!' said Parvati, looking positively excited at this piece of gossip. 'Wow, you like your Quidditch players, don't you? First Krum, then McLaggen.'

'I like _really_ _good_ Quidditch players,' Hermione corrected her, still smiling.

'What got slipped into your pumpkin juice?' Asked a bewildered Draco.

'I haven't the faintest idea of what you are talking about, dear Draco,' smiled Hermione. 'Anyway, I only came down here to ask if I could borrow your sapphire necklace and earrings, Harri.'

'Of course. Come on, I'll go get them for you. Besides, we should start to get ready anyway. I'll see you tonight, Ginny, Dean, Draco.' Said Harri, before leading Hermione out of the Hall.

'McLaggen? Seriously?' Harri asked, the moment they were out of hearing range.

'I thought he would annoy Ron the most. Though I have to admit, at one point I was considering Zacharias Smith...'

'Please tell I just imagined you saying that you were considering Smith,' groaned Harri. 'That is just disgusting. At least McLaggen has some looks going for him.'

'That's one of the reasons I chose him,' admitted Hermione.

'Hermione, I don't mean to sound like your mother or anything, but do you really think making Ron jealous is going to work?' Asked Harri.

Hermione didn't answer.

'Next time, go with Neville or Seamus or Justin. But, I guess you're going to have to make mistakes to learn your lessons.' Harri said as they arrived at her shared quarters.

One thing Harri could say about Slughorn's Christmas party was that she never wanted to go to one ever again. She should have known that she should have made up an excuse to get out of it, but if she hadn't she would have never become closer to finding out what was wrong with Draco, nor would she have become even more worried about him.

The moment Slughorn catch sight of Harri, he hurried over to her arm she was clasped to his side. He did not notice the look Draco was giving him.

'Harri, my dear! How good to see you! Come, I have many people I wish you to meet!' Slughorn said excitedly, leading Harri over to a small, stout, bespectacled man and his tall and sunken companion who looked suspiciously like a vampire. 'Harri, I'd like you to meet Eldred Worple, an old student of mine, author of "Blood Brothers: My Life Amongst the Vampires" - and, of course, his friend Sanguini.'

'Harrietta Dumbledore, I am simply delighted!' said Worple, peering short sightedly up into Harri's face. 'I was saying to Professor Slughorn only the other day, "Where is the biography of Harrietta Dumbledore for which we have all been waiting?"'

'You were?' Harri asked, not sounding to keen of the idea.

'Just as modest as Horace described!' said Worple. 'But seriously' - his manner changed; it became suddenly businesslike - 'I would be delighted to write it myself— people are craving to know more about you, my dear, craving! If you were prepared to grant me a few interviews, say in four- or five-hour sessions, why, we could have the book finished within months. And all with very little effort on your part, I assure you — ask Sanguini here if it isn't quite — Sanguini, stay here!' added Worple, suddenly stern, for the vampire had been edging toward the nearby group of girls, a rather hungry look in his eye. 'Here, have a pasty,' said Worple, seizing one from a passing elf and stuffing it into Sanguini's hand before turning his attention back to Harri. 'My dear, the gold you could make, you have no idea —'

'I sorry, but I'll have to recline. I'm not really interested in having people knowing nearly everything about me. And the money doesn't interest me either,' added Harri, as Worple, opened his mouth to comment about gold, no doubt. If you would excuse us, I just saw one of my friends. It was a pleasure to meet you.'

'You to, Harrietta,' replied Worple, with a slight bow. He was clearly disappointed.

Harri nodded to him, took Draco's hand and lead him through the crowd over to Hermione.

'What happened to you? You look like you just fought your way out Devil's Snare.' Was Harri's greeting to Hermione.

'I wish,' muttered Hermione.

'So, what happened?' Asked Draco.

'I just left McLaggen under the mistletoe,' mumbled Hermione. 'Honestly, he makes Grawp look like a gentleman.'

Harri and Draco snorted.

'Let's go this way, we'll be able to see him coming, he's so tall. . .' Hermione mumbled, leading them through the crowd, but she soon took off again as McLaggen headed in their direction.

'I bet she's going to be having a good night,' said a sympathetic Draco.

'I feel her pain,' muttered Harri, referring to Slughorn. She was about to say something else when she suddenly realised who they were standing next to. Harri prayed that she hadn't noticed them and that they would be able to sneak away, but she wasn't in luck.

'Harri Dumbledore!' said Professor Trelawney in deep, vibrant tone.

'Oh, hello,' Harri said unenthusiastically.

'My dear girl,' she said in a very carrying whisper. 'The rumours! The stories! "The Chosen One"! Of course, I have known for a very long time. . . . The omens were never good, Harri. . . But why have you not returned to Divination? For you, of all people, the subject is of the utmost importance!'

Draco snorted again and turned away. Harri knew that he was laughing.

'Ah, Sybill, we all think our subject's most important!' said a loud voice, and Slughorn appeared at Professor Trelawney s other side, his face very red, his velvet hat a little askew, a glass of mead in one hand and an enormous mince pie in the other. Harri groaned. 'But I don't think I've ever known such a natural at Potions!' said Slughorn, regarding Harri with a fond, if bloodshot, eye. 'Instinctive, you know — like his mother and uncle! I've only ever taught a few with this kind of ability, I can tell you that, Sybill— why even Severus —"Slughorn threw out an arm and seemed to scoop Severus out of thin air toward them. Severus had hold of Aurora's hand. 'I was just talking about Harri's exceptional potion-making! Some credit must go to you, of course, you taught her for five years and no doubt have taught her a few things during the summer!"

'Indeed. She is a very bright young witch,' Severus said proudly.

'Indeed!' Agreed Slughorn. 'You should have seen what she gave me, first lesson, Draught of Living Death - never had a student produce finer on a first attempt, I don't think even you, Severus -'

'Really?' Said a very pleased Severus. Harri blushed slightly. She hated it when her family bragged about her abilities to friends.

'Remind me what other subjects you're taking, Harri?' asked Slughorn.

'Defence Against the Dark Arts, Charms, Transfiguration, Herbology... basically all the subjects required to become an Auror,' replied Harri.

'Well, I'm sure you'll make a great Auror!' boomed Slughorn. 'And I have no doubt that anything will prevent you from achieving this goal, but have you got any back up plans, just in case?'

'Um yeah. Either to play professional Quidditch or to teach. Out of the two, I would prefer to teach.'

'Well, you've had a lot of practice with that already,' grinned Severus. 'Anyway, may I borrow Draco for a moment? Just need a quick word.'

Harri glanced at Draco and could have sworn that his smile flickered.

'Sure,' said Draco, but he didn't seem keen. He looked over at Harri. 'Will you be alright?'

'Of course I will. While you're gone I think I'll go find Hermione and try to save her. Please excuse me.' Harri said.

Of course that was a downright lie. She was planning on following Draco and Severus to find out once and for all what was going on. She knew that Severus needed to talk to Draco on a matter of great importance - she heard him talking to Aurora - and somehow she knew that Severus knew what was bothering Draco.

Making sure that no one saw her, Harri slipped out of the party and noiselessly followed Severus and Draco down the corridor, before stopping outside the classroom they had just entered and listened to every word.

'You cannot afford mistakes, Draco, because if you are expelled —'

'I didn't have anything to do with it, all right?'

'I hope you are telling the truth, because it was both clumsy and foolish. Already you are suspected of having a hand in it.'

'Who suspects me?' Draco asked quickly, before growling out, 'For the last time, I didn't do it, okay? That Katie Bell must've had an enemy no one knows about - don't look at me like that! I know what you're doing, I'm not stupid, but it won't work - I can stop you!'

There was a pause and then Severus said quietly, 'Ah . . . Aunt Bellatrix has been teaching you Occlumency, I see. What thoughts are you trying to conceal from your master, Draco?'

'I'm not trying to conceal anything from him! I just don't want you butting in!'

Harri moved closer to the door. Since when did Draco talk to Severus like that? They had always gotten along swimmingly, and he was his godfather after all! And what did Severus mean about Draco having a master? He couldn't mean Voldemort for he told her that he didn't make Draco a Death Eater. And how could Severus blame Draco for the attack on Katie? He was with her the entire time!

'So that is why you have been avoiding me this term? You have feared my interference? You realise that, had anybody else failed to come to my office when I had told them repeatedly to be there, Draco -'

'So put me in detention! Report me to Albus!' Snapped Draco.

There was another pause.

Then Severus said, 'You know perfectly well that I do not wish to do either of those things.'

'You'd better stop telling me to come to your office then!'

'Listen to me,' said Severus, his voice so low now that Harri had to push her hair away from her ear to hear. 'I am trying to help you. I swore to your mother I would protect you. I made the Unbreakable Vow, Draco -'

'Looks like you'll have to break it, then, because I don't need your protection! It's my job, he gave it to me and I'm doing it, I've got a plan and it's going to work, it's just taking a bit longer than I thought it would!'

'What is your plan?'

'It's none of your business!'

'If you tell me what you are trying to do, I can assist you...'

'I have all the assistance I need, thanks, I'm not alone!'

'Well, if Crabbe and Goyle intend to pass their Defence Against the Dark Arts O.W.L this time around, they will need to work a little harder than they are doing at pres —"

'What does it matter?' said Draco. "Defence Against the Dark Arts - it's all just a joke, isn't it, an act? Like any of us need protecting against the Dark Arts -'

'It is an act that is crucial to success, Draco!' said Severus. 'Where do you think I would have been all these years, if I had not known how to act? Now listen to me! You are being incautious, wandering around at night, getting yourself caught, and if you are placing your reliance in assistants like Crabbe and Goyle -'

'They're not the only ones; I've got other people on my side, better people!'

'Then why not confide in me, and I can -'

'I know what you're up to! You want to steal my glory!'

There was another pause, then Severus said coldly, 'Will you listen to yourself, Draco! You are speaking like a child! Why would I need your glory? Why would I need to get into my brother's good books?' Severus sighed before continuing in a quieter and gentler voice. 'I quite understand that your fathers capture and imprisonment has upset you, but -'

Harri quickly hid in the shadows of a torch as Draco stormed out of the room and headed back toward the party. Severus followed moments later looking angry and annoyed, but also sad. Harri waited until he too was out of sight before emerging from her hiding spot. Instead of clearing her mind of all questions and worries, following them created even more questions and worries.

* * *

Harri never mentioned what she had overheard to anyone; neither did she bring anything up with Severus or Draco. Instead, for the rest of the term, she watched Draco's every move very carefully and monitored how Severus and Draco acted when they were in the same room, which wasn't very often. Draco was now making up all kinds of excuses not to see Severus or go to his quarters. Harri hoped that whatever was going on would clear up over the Christmas break. Unluckily for Harri, instead of matters being resolved, another one appeared.

Christmas day soon arrived and Severus, Aurora and Harri all went to the Burrow for Christmas lunch. When they arrived, they saw that all the Weasley's, except Percy, had come home and that Mad-Eye, Remus and Sirius were also present.

'Merry Christmas, everyone!' Harri said happily as she entered the house.

'Merry Christmas, Harri!' Mrs Weasley said joyfully, walking over and embracing her tightly, before putting a few presents in her arms. 'Severus! Aurora! Merry Christmas! But - where is Minerva and Albus?' Mrs Weasley added with a frown.

Mother and Father send their apologises for not being able to make it. Something urgent came up and it was unavoidable.' Severus said, after embracing Mrs Weasley.

'Well, that is a bit unfortunate. I'll have to remember to wrap up some Christmas cake for you to take home to them.'

Christmas lunch started off well, with everyone talking and laughing. Harri sat between Fred and Sirius, and at that moment, she forgot all her worries regarding Draco and what she had overheard - how could she not, with Sirius telling stories of all the mischief the Maunders had gotten into, and it was even funnier when Sirius would mention some classic pranks that James had thought of, only to have Severus admit that he was the one that gave James the idea. The look on Sirius' face was priceless. But sadly, all great things must come to an end, and this happened just as they were finishing lunch.

Fred was in the middle of explaining a new product they were about to sell when Mrs Weasley interrupted him with an excited yell.

'Arthur! Arthur - it's Percy!' Yelled Mrs Weasley, jumping out of her seat and hurrying to the door before anyone could blink.

Moments later, Percy was standing in the kitchen with none other than the Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour.

There was a moment's painful silence. Then Percy said rather stiffly, 'Merry Christmas, Mother.'

'Oh, Percy!' Cried Mrs. Weasley, and she threw herself into his arms.

'You must forgive this intrusion," said Scrimgeour, when Mrs. Weasley looked around at him, beaming and wiping her eyes. 'Percy and I were in the neighbourhood - working, you know - and he couldn't resist dropping in and seeing you all.'

Harri didn't believe that for a second, seeing as Percy showed no sign of wanting to greet any of the rest of the family. He stood, poker-straight and awkward-looking, and stared over everybody else's heads. Mr. Weasley, Fred, and George were all observing him, stony-faced. Harri knew that there was a hidden motivation somewhere.

'Please, come in, sit down, Minister!' fluttered Mrs. Weasley, straightening her hat. 'Have a little turkey, or some pudding.'

'No, no, my dear Molly," said Scrimgeour. Harri guessed that he had checked her name with Percy before they entered the house. 'I don't want to intrude, wouldn't be here at all if Percy hadn't wanted to see you all so badly. . . .'

'Oh, Perce!' said Mrs. Weasley tearfully, reaching up to kiss him.

Harri nearly snorted. If he really wanted to see them all so badly, he would of at least greeted them.

'...We've only looked in for five minutes, so I'll have a stroll around the yard while you catch up with Percy. No, no, I assure you I don't want to butt in! Well, if anybody cared to show me your charming garden . . . Ah, this young lady's finished, why doesn't she take a stroll with me?'

The atmosphere around the table changed perceptibly. Everybody looked from Scrimgeour to Harri. Nobody seemed to find Scrimgeour's pretence that he did not know Harry's name convincing, or find it natural that he should be chosen to accompany the Minister around the garden when Ginny, Fleur, Sirius, Severus and George also had clean plates.

'Yeah, all right,' said Harry into the silence.

She knew that there was a hidden agenda. Now she just had to find out exactly what he wanted. After all, she was no fool. All Scrimgeour's talk that they had just been in the area, that Percy wanted to look up his family, this must be the real reason that they had come, so that Scrimgeour could speak to Harri alone...but why?

'It's fine,' she said quietly to Sirius as she began to rise. He had half risen from his chair. 'Fine,' she added, as Severus opened his mouth to speak. By the look on his face, he did not approve.

'Wonderful!' said Scrimgeour, standing back to let Harri pass through the door ahead of him. 'We'll just take a turn around the garden, and Percy and I'll be off. Carry on, everyone!'

Harri walked across the yard toward the Weasleys' overgrown, snow-covered garden, Scrimgeour limping slightly at her side. He had, Harri knew, been Head of the Auror office; he looked tough and battle-scarred, very different from portly Fudge in his bowler hat.

'Charming,' said Scrimgeour, stopping at the garden fence and looking out over the snowy lawn and the indistinguishable plants. 'Charming.'

Harri said nothing. She could tell that Scrimgeour was watching her. She just wished he'd get on with it instead of wasting her time.

'I've wanted to meet you for a very long time,' said Scrimgeour, after a few moments. 'Did you know that?'

'No,' said Harri truthfully.

'Oh yes, for a very long time. But you grandfather has been very protective of you,' said Scrimgeour. 'Natural, of course, natural, after what you've been through. . . . Especially what happened at the Ministry ...' He waited for Harri to say something, but Harri did not oblige, so he went on, 'I have been hoping for an occasion to talk to you ever since I gained office, but Dumbledore has - most understandably, as I say - prevented this.'

Still, Harri said nothing and just waited for him to get to the point. She vaguely wondered how her grandfather would react when he found out Scrimgeour had found a way to meet her without his approval.

'The rumours that have flown around!' said Scrimgeour. 'Well, of course, we both know how these stories get distorted ... all these whispers of a prophecy . . . of you being "the Chosen One"...'

They were getting near it now, Harri thought, the reason Scrimgeour was here, but even though they were getting closer to the real reason, Harri still felt impatient and wished that she could just tell him to spit it out, but her grandparents would be greatly disappointed in her lack of manners.

'I assume that Dumbledore has discussed these matters with you?'

Harri considered whether she ought to lie or not. She looked at the little gnome prints all around the flowerbeds, and the scuffed-up patch that marked the spot where Fred had caught the gnome now wearing the tutu at the top of the Christmas tree. Finally, she decided on the truth ... or a bit of it. She was the heir of Slytherin after all.

'Yes, we've discussed it.'

'Have you, have you...' said Scrimgeour, squinting over at her. 'And what has Dumbledore told you, Harrietta?'

'Sorry, but that's between us,' said a firm Harri. She kept his voice as pleasant as she could, and Scrimgeour's tone, too, was light and friendly as he said, 'Oh, of course, if it's a question of confidences, I wouldn't want you to divulge . . . no, no ... and in any case, does it really matter whether you are "the Chosen One" or not?'

'I'm afraid that I don't really know what you mean, Minister.'

'Well, of course, to you it will matter enormously,' said Scrimgeour with a laugh. 'But to the Wizarding community at large . . . it's all perception, isn't it? It's what people believe that's important.'

Yet again Harri said nothing. She thought she saw, dimly, where they were heading, but she was not going to help Scrimgeour get there.

'People believe you are "the Chosen One," you see,' said Scrimgeour. 'They think you quite the hero - which, of course, you arc, Harri, chosen or not! How many times have you faced He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named now? Well, anyway,' he pressed on, without waiting for a reply, not that he would have gotten one, 'the point is, you are a symbol of hope to many, Harri. The idea that there is somebody out there who might be able, who might even be destined, to destroy He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named - well, naturally, it gives people a lift. And I can't help but feel that, once you realize this, you might consider it, well, almost a duty, to stand alongside the Ministry, and give everyone a boost.'

'Minister, I don't exactly understand what you want,' said Harri slowly. '"Stand alongside the Ministry" . . . What does that mean?'

'Oh, well, nothing at all onerous, I assure you,' said Scrimgeour. 'If you were to be seen popping in and out of the Ministry from time to time, for instance, that would give the right impression. And of course, while you were there, you would have an opportunity to speak to Gawain Robards, my successor as Head of the Auror office. Dolores Umbridge has told me that you cherish an ambition to become an Auror. Well, that could be arranged very easily. ...'

Harri's eyes flashed at the mention of Umbridge. She found it hard to believe that she was still working there. She would have to talk to her grandfather.

'So basically,' she said, as though she just wanted to clarify a few points, 'you'd like to give the impression that I'm working for the Ministry?'

'It would give everyone a lift to think you were more involved, Harrietta,' said Scrimgeour, sounding relieved that Harri had caught on so quickly. '"The Chosen One," you know. . . It's all about giving people hope, the feeling that exciting things are happening...'

'But if I keep running in and out of the Ministry,' said Harri, still endeavouring to keep her voice friendly, 'won't that seem as though I approve of what the Ministry's up to?'

'Well,' said Scrimgeour, frowning slightly, 'well, yes, that's partly why we'd like -'

'No, I don't think that'll work," said Harri pleasantly. 'You see, I don't like some of the things the Ministry's doing. Locking up Stan Shunpike, for instance.'

Scrimgeour did not speak for a moment but his expression hardened instantly.

'I would not expect you to understand,' he said, and he was not as successful at keeping anger out of his voice as Harri had been. 'These are dangerous times, and certain measures need to be taken. You are sixteen years old —'

'Grandfather's a lot older than sixteen, and he doesn't think Stan should be in Azkaban either,' said Harri. 'You're making Stan a scapegoat, just like you want to make me a mascot.'

They looked at each other, long and hard.

Finally Scrimgeour said, with no pretence at warmth, 'I see. You prefer — like your grandfather - to disassociate yourself from the Ministry?'

'I don't want to be used,' said Harri. 'Nor do I appreciate it.'

'Some would say it's your duty to be used by the Ministry!'

'Yeah, and others might say it's your duty to check that people really are Death Eaters before you chuck them in prison,' said Harri, her temper rising now. 'You're doing what Barty Crouch did. You never get it right, you people, do you? Either we've got Fudge, pretending everything's lovely while people get murdered right under his nose, or we've got you, chucking the wrong people into jail and trying to pretend you've got "the Chosen One" working for you!'

'So you're not "the Chosen One"?' said Scrimgeour.

'I didn't say that. Besides, I thought you said it didn't matter either way?' said Harri, with a bitter laugh. 'Not to you anyway.'

'I shouldn't have said that,' said Scrimgeour quickly. 'It was tactless -'

'No Minister, it was honest,' Harri said, somewhat coldly. 'One of the only honest things you've said to me. You don't care whether I live or die, but you do care that I help you convince everyone you're winning the war against Voldemort. I haven't forgotten, Minister...'

She raised her right fist. There, shining white on the back of her hand, were the scars which Dolores Umbridge had forced her to carve into her own flesh: I must not tell lies.

'I don't remember you rushing to my defence when I was trying to tell everyone Voldemort was back. The Ministry wasn't so keen to be pals last year.'

They stood in silence as icy as the ground beneath their feet.

'What is Dumbledore up to?' said Scrimgeour brusquely. 'Where does he go when he is absent from Hogwarts?'

'No idea,' shrugged Harri.

'And you wouldn't tell me if you knew," said Scrimgeour, 'would you?'

'No, I wouldn't,' said Harri. 'I would never betray my grandfather to the likes of you.'

'Well, then, I shall have to see whether I can't find out by other means.' He replied coldly, ignoring her last statement.

'You can try,' said an unconcerned Harri. 'But you seem cleverer than Fudge, so I'd have thought you'd have learned from his mistakes. He tried interfering at Hogwarts. You might have noticed he's not Minister anymore, but Grandfather's still headmaster. I'd leave Grandfather alone, if I were you.'

There was a long pause.

'Well, it is clear to me that he has done a very good job on you,' said Scrimgeour, his eyes cold and hard behind his wire-rimmed glasses, 'There is definitely no doubting who's granddaughter you are.'

'Good, than people will know that I'm am not an easy target,' said a proud Harri. 'Anyway, I'm so happy that we straightened that out.' She added with a polite, yet cold smile. 'We should head back. I'm sure Percy has had a _wonderful_ visit with his family.' And with that said, she turned her back on the Minister of Magic and strode back toward the house with her head held high.

When Harri re-entered the house, the silence that filled the room was unbearable. Severus and Sirius bother were standing at a window, no doubt watching the entire exchange between herself and the Minister, while the Weasleys, Fleur and Aurora sat awkwardly looking at each other.

'Well Percy, we must be off.' Scrimgeour said cheerfully as he walked back into the room. 'We thank you for your hospitality, dear Molly,' he added with a slight bow of his head.

'It was a pleasure, Minister,' replied Mrs Weasley, before tightly embracing a tense Percy.

'Goodbye Mother,' said Percy, before following Scrimgeour outside and Apparating away.

'Well, that was a cheerful visit,' muttered Fred. 'So Harri, what did the Minister really want?'

'Basically, he wanted me to act as though I am working with the Ministry,' replied a sour Harri. 'Can you believe the nerve of him?'

'He's a politician, what do you expect?' Snorted Sirius. 'I thought Albus said that he wasn't allowed to see Harri,' he added to Severus.

'That's because Father did say that. I'd hate to be the Minister when Father finds out about this though,' muttered Severus.

'Yeah. Oh, by the way. I think I just made a new enemy,' added Harri.

'What makes you say that?' Asked Ginny.

'Well, Scrimgeour and I didn't part on the best of terms. I kind of gave him a piece of my mind,' replied Harri, looking at her uncle the entire time out of the corner of her eyes, watching for his reaction.

'Well, you can't go through life without making some enemies,' shrugged Severus. 'Besides, Scrimgeour isn't stupid enough to harm you or anything.'

'Hmm,' was all Harri said. She was convinced. She thought that Scrimgeour was entirely that smart. If he was, he should have known better than to approach her.

* * *

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**Written:** 12 November 2011


	7. Memories and Surprises

**CHAPTER SEVEN: MEMORIES AND SURPRISES**

When Harri arrived back for a new term, she was startled to see that Draco looked as tired as ever and he seemed stressed. She thought that during the Christmas holidays, Draco would get better, not worse. There was nothing for it. She would have to tell her friends what she had overheard and get their opinions on what she should do, which wasn't so hard since Draco went off to do some work - "What work? We haven't got any homework yet!' Exclaimed Ron - while the rest of them went down to the lake.

'I wonder why Draco's always has work to do,' Neville said after a moment of silence.

'Beats me. Every time I ask him why he's always studying, he replies saying that what he's doing has nothing to do with school work.' Said Hermione.

'That's because I don't think it has anything to do with school. I think it's something much bigger than that.' Harri said sadly, before re-telling the conversation she overheard.

'Why would they believe that Draco was the one that attacked Katie? He and Katie are friends!' Said a startled Hermione. 'And who is that master they were talking about?'

'I don't know. That's what worries me,' admitted Harri. 'As crazy as it might seem, at first I thought that Draco had become a Death Eater, like the rest of his family.'

'What? Now that is ridiculous! What made you think that Draco could be a Death Eater?' Asked a startled Ron.

'That day in Madam Malkin's, he kept complaining that she was sticking pins in his arm, remember? But the pins neither did. I was on the same arm that would hold a Dark Mark. And remember how he threatened Borgin? Until now, I believed my Uncle Voldemort when said that Draco wasn't a Death Eater, but now...I'm starting to have second thoughts. It seems as though being a Death Eater is the only explanation.'

'Listen, Draco's our friend. Why don't we just ask him?' Suggested Luna.

The others just stared at her.

'How would you bring a topic like that up?' Wondered Neville, while the others looked as though they would rather swim with the Giant Squid rather than speak to Draco about him being a Death Eater.

Time went on and none of the friends approached Draco about his loyalties. Instead they kept a close I on him. Waiting to see if he would show them a sign to prove Harri's theory otherwise. It was turning this time that Albus told Harri that they would start their private lessons again, something Harri wasn't entirely thrilled about. True she would learn more about her uncle, but it also meant she would have to spend more time with her grandfather. She still hadn't completely forgiven him about forbidding her from seeing her uncle.

That Saturday, Harri excused herself from the company of her friends - minus Draco who had disappeared again - and went to Albus' office. This would be the first time Harri had spoken to Albus since before Christmas lunch with the Weasleys.

'Good afternoon, Harri,' greeted Albus as Harri entered his office. 'I hear that you met the Minister of Magic over Christmas?'

'Yes,' answered Harri. 'He's not very happy with me now though.'

'No,' sighed Albus. 'He is not very happy with me either. We must try not to sink beneath our anguish, Harri, but battle on.'

Harri grinned slightly.

'He wanted me to tell the Wizarding community that the Ministry's doing a _wonderful_ job.'

Albus didn't look surprised.

'It was Fudge's idea originally, you know. During his last days in office, when he was trying desperately to cling to his post, he sought a meeting with you, hoping that you would give him your support —'

'After everything Fudge did last year?' Harri said with a hollow laugh. 'After Umbridge?'

'I told Cornelius there was no chance of it, but the idea did not die when he left office. Within hours of Scrimgeour's appointment we met and he demanded that I arrange a meeting with you —'

'Did he think that he could just order you to bring me to see him? I'm a teenager!'

'I know. I believe that's why Rufus found a way to corner you at last.'

'Hmm, Scrimgeour wanted to know where you go when you're not at Hogwarts,' explained Harri.

'Yes, he is very nosy about that,' said Albus. 'He has even attempted to have me followed. Amusing, really. He set Dawlish to tail me. It wasn't kind. I have already been forced to jinx Dawlish once; I did it again with the greatest regret.'

'You'd think that they would have learnt by now,' Harri said, shaking her head. 'So they still don't know where you go?'

'No, they don't, and the time is not quite right for you to know either. Now, I suggest we press on, unless there's anything else?'

For a moment, Harri thought about telling Albus of the conversation she overheard between Draco and Severus, but she decided against it. She shook her head and said, 'No'.

'In that case,' said Albus, in a ringing voice, 'we meet this evening to continue the tale of Tom Dumbledore, whom we left last lesson poised on the threshold of his years at Hogwarts. Well, the start of the school year arrived and with it came Tom Dumbledore, or as he was known as back then Tom Riddle; a quiet boy in his second-hand robes, who lined up with the other first years to be sorted. He was placed in Slytherin House almost the moment that the Sorting Hat touched his head. As an unusually talented and very good-looking orphan, he naturally drew attention and sympathy from the staff almost from the moment of his arrival. He seemed police, quiet, and thirsty for knowledge. Nearly all were most favourably impressed by him, which pleased your grandmother and me immensely, as you can imagine. Any parent would be proud of their child.'

Albus paused for a minute before sighing sadly and then continuing.

'Then, just as he was about to start his sixth year, while he was out buying his school supplies, Gellert Grindelwald attacked. Since that day, I kept a closer eye on him for I began to worry what that meeting had done to him since he refused to talk about it. It was from that moment that I began to lose my trust in Tom, and he became very guarded with me. He became careful about what he confided in me and said around me. However, he never tried to and charm me as he charmed so many of my colleagues and his mother.'

'He was able to charm Grandmother?' Harri repeated. She couldn't imagine Minerva ever being charmed.

'It's amazing something's a child can do to their parents,' smiled Albus, though it was a sad smile. 'Anyway, as he moved up the school, he gathered about him a group of dedicated friends. He was the first Slytherin to become friends with people outside his own house, but that soon changed as he started his sixth year. He began making friends with people in Slytherin and ignored his old friends. This new group of friends set a kind of dark glamour within the castle. They were a motley collection; a mixture of the weak seeking protection, the ambitious seeking some shared glory, and the thuggish gravitating toward a leader who could show them more refined forms of cruelty. In other words, they were the forerunners of the Death Eaters, and indeed some of them became the first Death Eaters after leaving Hogwarts.

'Rigidly controlled by Tom, they were never detected in open wrongdoing, although their last two years at Hogwarts were marked by a number of nasty incidents to which they were never satisfactorily linked, the most serious of which was, of course, the opening of the Chamber of Secrets, which resulted in the death of a girl. As you know, Hagrid was wrongly accused of that crime.

'I have not been able to find many memories of Tom at Hogwarts, apart from my own and your grandmother's,' said Albus, placing his withered hand on the Pensieve. 'Few who knew him then are prepared to talk about him; they are too terrified. What I know, I found out after he had left Hogwarts, after much painstaking effort, after tracing those few who could be tricked into speaking, after searching old records and questioning Muggle and wizard witnesses alike. What I did find out though, was that he was extremely interested in your grandmother's cousin Marvolo Grant's daughter and son, whom people would know as his mother and uncle. At first I thought nothing of it, but now I wish I had of paid more attention.

'Sometime during his sixth year, he changed his identity of Lord Voldemort. Then during the summer before his final year, he left Acacia - to which he returned annually - and set off to find his Gaunt relatives. And now, Harri, if you will stand...'

Albus rose, and Harri saw that he was again holding a small crystal bottle filled with swirling, pearly memory.

'I was very lucky to collect this,' he said, as he poured the gleaming mass into the Pensieve. 'As you will understand when we have experienced it. Shall we?'

Harri stepped up to the stone basin and bowed obediently until her face sank through the surface of the memory. She felt the familiar sensation of falling through nothingness and then landed upon a dirty stone floor in almost total darkness.

It took her several seconds to recognize the place, by which time Albus had landed beside her. The Gaunts' house was now more indescribably filthy than anywhere Harri had ever seen. The ceiling was thick with cobwebs, the floor coated in grime; mouldy and rotting food lay upon the table amidst a mass of crusted pots. The only light came from a single guttering candle placed at the feet of a man with hair and beard so overgrown Harri could see neither eyes nor mouth. He was slumped in an armchair by the fire, and Harri wondered for a moment whether he was dead. But then there came a loud knock on the door and the man jerked awake, raising a wand in his right hand and a short knife in his left.

The door creaked open. There on the threshold, holding an old-fashioned lamp, stood a boy Harri recognized at once: tall, pale, dark-haired, and handsome — the teenage Voldemort, wearing his Tom Riddle glamour.

Voldemort's eyes moved slowly around the hovel and then found the man in the armchair. For a few seconds they looked at each other, then the man staggered upright, the many empty bottles at his feet clattering and tinkling across the floor.

'YOU!' he bellowed. 'YOU!'

And he hurtled drunkenly at Voldemort, wand and knife held aloft.

'Stop.'

Voldemort spoke in Parseltongue. The man skidded into the table, sending mouldy pots crashing to the floor. He stared at Voldemort. There was a long silence while they contemplated each other. The man broke it.

'You speak it?'

'Yes, I speak it,' said Voldemort. He moved forward into the room, allowing the door to swing shut behind him. Harri could not help but feel a resentful admiration for her uncle's complete lack of fear. His race merely expressed disgust and, perhaps, disappointment.

'Where is Marvolo?' he asked.

'Dead,' said the other. 'Died years ago, didn't he?'

Voldemort frowned.

'Who are you, then?'

'I'm Morfin, ain't I?'

Harri was beginning to wonder why he kept asking Voldemort these things as questions. How was her uncle supposed to know?

'Marvolo's son?'

'Course I am.'

Morfin pushed the hair out of his dirty face, the better to see Voldemort, and Harri saw that he wore Marvolo's black-stoned ring on his right hand.

'I thought you was that Muggle,' whispered Morfin. 'You look mighty like that Muggle.'

'What Muggle?' asked Voldemort sharply.

'That Muggle what my sister took a fancy to, that Muggle what lives in the big house over the way,' said Morfin, and he spat unexpectedly upon the floor between them, making Voldemort look even more disgusted than he already was. 'You look right like him. Riddle. But he's older now, in 'e? He's older'n you, now I think on it...' Morfin looked slightly dazed and swayed a little, still clutching the edge of the table for support. 'He come back, see,' he added stupidly.

Voldemort was gazing at Morfin as though appraising his possibilities. Now he moved a little closer and said, 'Riddle came back?'

'Ar, he left her, and serve her right, marrying filth!' said Morfin, spitting on the floor again. Voldemort closed his eyes briefly as though he was trying to draw strength to remain patient. 'Robbed us, mind, before she ran off. Where's the locket, eh, where's Slytherin's locket?'

Voldemort did not answer. Morfin was working himself into a rage again; he brandished his knife and shouted, 'Dishonoured us, she did, that little slut! And who're you, coming here and asking questions about all that? It's over, innit. . . . It's over. ...'

He looked away, staggering slightly, and Voldemort moved forward. As he did so, an unnatural darkness fell, extinguishing Voldemort's lamp and Morfin's candle, extinguishing everything...

Albus' fingers closed tightly around Harri's arm and they were soaring back into the present again.

'Is that all?' said Harri at once. 'Why did it go dark, what happened?'

'Because Morfin could not remember anything from that point onward,' answered Albus, gesturing Harri back into her seat. 'When he awoke next morning, he was lying on the floor, quite alone. Marvolo's ring had gone. Meanwhile, in the village of Little Hangleton, a maid was running along the High Street, screaming that there were three bodies lying in the drawing room of the big house: Tom Riddle Senior and his mother and father. The Muggle authorities were perplexed. As far as I am aware, they do not know to this day how the Riddles died, for the Avada Kedavra curse does not usually leave any sign of damage. . . . The exception sits before me,' Albus added, with a nod to Harri's scar. 'The Ministry, on the other hand, knew at once that this was a wizard's murder. They also knew that a convicted Muggle-hater lived across the valley from the Riddle house, a Muggle-hater who had already been imprisoned once for attacking one of the murdered people. So the Ministry called upon Morfin. They did not need to question him, to use Veritaserum or Legilimency. He admitted to the murder on the spot, giving details only the murderer could know. He was proud, he said, to have killed the Muggles, had been awaiting his chance all these years. He handed over his wand, which was proved at once to have been used to kill the Riddles. And he permitted himself to be led off to Azkaban without a fight.'

'What I don't understand is why he killed Riddle in the first place. What did he gain by doing that?' Harri asked, totally confused by her uncle's actions.

'I do not know,' Albus muttered sadly.

'In that case, did Voldemort steal Morfin's wand to make double sure to hide what he had done?' asked Harri.

'Yes,' said Albus. 'We have no memories to show us this, but I think we can be fairly sure what happened. Voldemort Stupefied Morfin, took his wand, and proceeded across the valley to "the big house over the way". There he murdered the Muggle man who had abandoned his witch relative, and, for good measure, Riddle's parents, thus obliterating the last of the Riddle. Then he returned to the Gaunt hovel, performed the complex bit of magic that would implant a false memory in Morfin's mind, laid Morfin's wand beside its unconscious owner, pocketed the ancient ring he wore, and departed.'

'And Morfin never realized he hadn't done it?'

'Never,' said Albus. 'He gave, as I say, a full and boastful confession.'

'But he had this real memory in him all the time!'

'Yes, but it took a great deal of skilled Legilimency to coax it out of him,' said Albus, 'and why should anybody delve further into Morfin's mind when he had already confessed to the crime? However, I was able to secure a visit to Morfin in the last weeks of his life, by which time I was attempting to discover as much as I could about Voldemort's past. I extracted this memory with difficulty. When I saw what it contained, I attempted to use it to secure Morfin's release from Azkaban. Before the Ministry reached their decision, however, Morfin had died.'

'But how come the Ministry didn't realize that Voldemort had done all that to Morfin?' Harri asked angrily. 'He was underage at the time, wasn't he? I thought they could detect underage magic!'

'You are quite right — they can detect magic, but not the perpetrator: You will remember that you were blamed by the Ministry for the Hover Charm that was, in fact, cast by —'

'Dobby,' growled Harri; this injustice still rankled. 'So if you're underage and you do magic inside an adult witch or wizard's house, the Ministry won't know?'

'They will certainly be unable to tell who performed the magic,' said Albus, smiling slightly at the look of great indignation on Harri's face. 'They rely on witch and wizard parents to enforce their offspring's obedience while within their walls.'

'Well, that's rubbish,' snapped Harri. 'Look what happened here, look what happened to Morfin!'

'I agree,' said Albus. 'Whatever Morfin was, he did not deserve to die as he did, blamed for murders he had not committed. But it is getting late, and I want you to see this other memory before we part. ...'

Albus took from an inside pocket another crystal phial and Harri fell silent at once, remembering that Albus had said it was the most important one he had collected. Harri noticed that the contents proved difficult to empty into the Pensieve, as though they had congealed slightly; did memories go bad?

'This will not take long, said Albus, when he had finally emptied the phial. 'We shall be back before you know it. Once more into the Pensieve, then...'

And Harri fell again through the silver surface, landing this time right in front of a man he recognized at once.

It was a much younger Horace Slughorn. Harri was so used to him bald that he found the sight of Slughorn with thick, shiny, straw-coloured hair quite disconcerting; it looked as though he had had his head thatched, though there was already a shiny Galleon-sized bald patch on his crown. His moustache, less massive than it was these days, was gingery-blond. He was not quite as rotund as the Slughorn Harri knew, though the golden buttons on his richly embroidered waistcoat were taking a fair amount of strain. His little feet resting upon a velvet pouffe, he was sitting well back in a comfortable winged armchair, one hand grasping a small glass of wine, the other searching through a box of crystallized pineapple.

Harri looked around as Albus appeared beside her and saw that they were standing in Slughorn's office. Half a dozen boys were sitting around Slughorn, all on harder or lower seats than his, and all in their mid-teens. Harri recognized Voldemort at once. His was the most handsome face and he looked the most relaxed of all the boys. His right hand lay negligently upon the arm of his chair; with a jolt, Harry saw that he was wearing Marvolo's gold-and-black ring; he had already killed Riddle.

'Sir, is it true that Professor Merrythought is retiring?' he asked.

'Tom, Tom, if I knew I couldn't tell you,' said Slughorn, wagging a reproving, sugar-covered finger at Voldemort, though ruining the effect slightly by winking. 'I must say, I'd like to know where you get your information, boy, more knowledgeable than half the staff, you are.'

Voldemort smiled; the other boys laughed and cast him admiring looks.

'What with your uncanny ability to know things you shouldn't, and your careful flattery of the people who matter — thank you fm the pineapple, by the way, you're quite right, it is my favourite — "

As several of the boys tittered, something very odd happened. The whole room was suddenly filled with a thick white fog, so that Harri could see nothing but the face of Albus, who was standing beside her. Then Slughorn's voice rang out through the mist, unnaturally loudly, 'You'll go wrong, boy, mark my words.'

The fog cleared as suddenly as it had appeared and yet nobody made any allusion to it, nor did anybody look as though anything unusual had just happened. Bewildered, Harri looked around as a small golden clock standing upon Slughorn's desk chimed eleven o'clock.

'Good gracious, is it that time already?' said Slughorn. 'You'd better get going, boys, or we'll all be in trouble. Lestrange, I want your essay by tomorrow or it's detention. Same goes for you, Avery.'

Slughorn pulled himself out of his armchair and carried his empty glass over to his desk as the boys filed out. Voldemort, however, stayed behind. Harri could tell he had dawdled deliberately, wanting to be last in the room with Slughorn.

'Look sharp, Tom,' said Slughorn, turning around and finding him still present. 'You don't want to be caught out of bed out of hours, and you a prefect...'

'Uncle Hoarce, I wanted to ask you something.'

'Ask away, then, m'boy, ask away...'

'I wondered what you know about. . . about Horcruxes?'

And it happened all over again: The dense fog filled the room so that Harri could not see Slughorn or Voldemort at all; only Albus, smiling serenely beside her. Then Slughorn's voice boomed out again, just as it had done before.

'I don't know anything about Horcruxes and I wouldn't tell you if I did! Now get out of here at once and don't let me catch you mentioning them again!'

'Well, that's that,' said Albus placidly beside Harri. 'Time to go.'

And Harri's feet left the floor to fall, seconds later, back onto the rug in front of Albus' desk.

'That's all there is?' Harri said blankly.

Albus had said that this was the most important memory of all, but she could not see what was so significant about it. Admittedly the fog, and the fact that nobody seemed to have noticed it, was odd, but other than that nothing seemed to have happened except that Voldemort had asked a question and failed to get an answer, which was also shocking.

'As you might have noticed,' said Albus, reseating himself behind his desk, 'that memory has been tampered with.'

'Tampered with?' repeated Harri, sitting back down too. 'Is that why that fog came and went with nobody noticing? But who tampered with it?

'Professor Slughorn meddled with his own recollections.'

'But why would he do a thing like that?'

'Because, I think, he is ashamed of what he remembers,' said Albus. 'He has tried to rework the memory to show himself in a better light, obliterating those parts which he does not wish me to see. It is, as you will have noticed, very crudely done, and that is all to the good, for it shows that the true memory is still there beneath the alterations. And so, for the first time, I am giving you homework, Harri. It will be your job to persuade Professor Slughorn to divulge the real memory, which will undoubtedly be our most crucial piece of information of all.'

Harri stared at him.

'But surely you don't need me — you could use Legilimency...or Veritaserum...'

'Professor Slughorn is an extremely able wizard who will be expecting both,' said Albus. 'He is much more accomplished at Occlumency than poor Morfin Gaunt, and I would be astonished if he has not carried an antidote to Veritaserum with him ever since I coerced him into giving me this travesty of a recollection. No, I think it would be foolish to attempt to wrest the truth from Professor Slughorn by force, and might do much more harm than good; I do not wish him to leave Hogwarts. However, he has his weaknesses like the rest of us, and I believe that you are the one person who might be able to penetrate his defences. It is most important that we secure the true memory, Harri...How important, we will only know when we have seen the real thing. So, good luck...and good night.'

A little taken aback by the abrupt dismissal, Harri got to her feet quickly. 'Good night, Grandfather.'

As she closed the study door behind her, she distinctly heard Phineas Nigellus say, 'I can't see why your granddaughter should be able to do it better than you, Dumbledore.'

'I wouldn't expect you to, Phineas,' replied Albus, and Fawkes gave another low, musical cry.

Sighing, Harri walked back to her room preparing for the challenge that lay ahead. It would not be easy to get the memory off Slughorn.

* * *

The next day, Harri, Ron, Hermione, Neville and Luna sat by the Lake trying to think of different ways Harri might be able to convince Slughorn to hand over the memory.

'Just go up to him and ask for it,' Ron said simply. For once, he wasn't glued to Lavender. 'He loves you. You're his little Potions Princess.'

'I doubt that will be enough, Ron.' Hermione said thoughtfully. 'He must be really desperate to keep the memory from Albus. Anyway, what are Horcruxes?'

'I don't know,' admitted Harri. 'Upon all the books that I have read here and at home, I have never come across such a term. All I can make of it is that it is something bad.'

Ron gasped.

'I never thought I'd see the day when the two brightest witches at Hogwarts didn't know what something was between the two of them.'

The friends snorted.

'Well, I guess there is no harm in trying Ron's idea,' muttered Harri as she walked to potions with Hermione and Ron. They would meet Draco there.

When they arrived at the class room, they found Draco and Ernie already seated. Draco looked as though he was about to fall asleep at any moment, and it wasn't like they were in a class where it was safe to fall asleep.

'Hey,' Harri said, sitting down next to Draco. 'Are you alright?'

'I'll be better once this lesson is over,' answered Draco, trying and failing to smile.

Harri just stared at him and he began to fidget uncomfortably under her cool gaze. Just as she was about to open her mouth to ask him to tell her what was bothering him, when Slughorn came in ready to start their potion lesson.

'Settle down, settle down, please! Quickly, now, lots of work to get through this afternoon! Golpalott's Third Law ... who can tell me -? But Miss Granger can, of course!'

Hermione recited at top speed: 'Golpalott's-Third-Law- states-that-the-antidote-for-a-blended-poison-will-be-equal-to-more-than-the-sum-of-the-antidotes-for-each-of-the-separale-components.'

'Precisely!' beamed Slughorn. Ten points for Gryffindor! Now, if we accept Golpalott's Third Law as true ...'

Harri zoned out. She didn't need to hear about Golpalott's Third Law again. It was bad enough learning about it during the summer holiday - she had pleaded with her family to give her extra school work, saying that she was bored, when in actual fact she was trying to get a distraction from her vision. Next to her, Draco rested his head on the desk and closed his eyes, while Ron doodled absently in his book. Hermione, however, was following Slughorn's every word keenly.

'... and so,' finished Slughorn, bringing Harri back to reality and waking Draco up - though he stubbornly denies that he had fallen asleep -, 'I want each of you to come and take one of these phials from my desk. You are to create an antidote for the poison within it before the end of the lesson. Good luck, and don't forget your protective gloves!'

Sighing, Harri slowly got up and dragged Draco and Ron along with her. Meanwhile, Hermione was hurrying back from Slughorn's desk. When the other three arrived back, Ernie and Hermione had already started, and Ron and Draco grudgingly followed. Draco, who still seemed half asleep, was throwing bits and pieces into his cauldron, and Ron followed his every move not realising that Draco didn't have a clue what he was doing. Harri was surprised that he didn't end up blowing up the cauldron or the classroom.

Harri turned her attention to a pink coloured poison. It was times like these that she was glad that her uncle had made her learn all about poisons. Immediately her mind listed all the potions that she knew were the colour pink. After that, she cautiously sniffed it - she already knew that none of the poisons that were pink would kill her from sniffing it - and was able to cross even more poisons off the list. Finally, after many more tests, she knew what poison it was, but that didn't help much since it didn't have a known antidote except for...

Harri quickly jumped to her feet and hurried over to the student supply cupboard and pulled out a bezoar, before going and sitting back down. She was beginning to wonder if it had been a good idea to get extra homework, for some of her lessons didn't hold much of a challenge, same with her homework.

Minutes later Slughorn called time, before walking around to check how everyone went.

'Harri, how come you didn't do it?' Ron whispered to her from around Draco.

'You'll see.'

When Slughorn finally reached their table, he looked at Draco - obviously a bit concern seeing as he had his eyes closed again - before retreating from both Ron and Draco's cauldrons, gave Hermione and Ernie a approving nod before stopping in front of Harri.

Harri smiled and showed him the bezoar.

'Loved the trick poison, Professor,' Harri said cheekily. 'After all, Golpalott's Third Law doesn't work with this poison since the only know antidote to date is the bezoar.'

Slughorn started laughing.

'Oh, my dear! You are just like your mother!' He laughed. 'Come to think of it. Severus gave me a similar answer when I use to tutor him.'

'I guess it runs in our family,' shrugged Harri, smiling one of her charming smiles. She wondered if Slughorn was in a good enough mood for her to ask him for the memory.

At that moment, the bell went and most of the class left immediately. Hermione, Ron and Draco were half way to the door when they realised that Harri was with them. Catching their eye, Harri motioned for them to go on and that she would catch up with them. They nodded and left, leaving Slughorn and Harri all alone. It took Slughorn a while to realise that Harri was still in the room.

'Come on, now, Harri, you'll be late for your next lesson,' said Slughorn pleasantly, snapping the gold clasps shut on his dragon-skin briefcase.

'Sir,' Harri said, reminding herself irresistibly of her uncle Voldemort, 'I was wondering if I could ask you something.'

'Ask away, then, my dear, ask away...'

'Sir, I was wondering if you knew anything about Horcruxes?' Harri asked casually.

Slughorn froze. His round face seemed to sink in upon itself. He licked his lips and said hoarsely, 'What did you say?'

'I asked whether you knew anything about Horcruxes, sir. You see -'

'Albus put you up to this,' whispered Slughorn.

His voice had changed completely. It was not genial any more, but shocked, terrified. He fumbled in his breast pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, mopping his sweating brow.

'Albus has shown you that - that memory,' said Slughorn. 'Well? Hasn't he?'

'Memory, sir?' Harri frown. She decided to play dumb. 'Memory about what?'

'The memory where I told your uncle about -' Slughorn stopped abruptly, and turned and glared at Harri. 'Nice try Harrietta, but I can see what you are doing. I've had a lot of practice with your uncles and father. Listen,' said Slughorn quietly, still dabbing at his white face, 'if you've seen that memory, Harri, you'll know that I don't know anything - anything - ' he repeated the word forcefully '- about Horcruxes.'

'But you've already admitted to me that you told him!' Exclaimed Harri, as Slughorn seized his dragonskin briefcase, stuffed his handkerchief back into his pocket and marched to the dungeon door, without saying another word.

Harri swore and went to her next class where she found her friends waiting for her.

'How did it go?' Hermione asked the moment she saw Harri. She had just finished telling Draco about Voldemort's Horcruxes.

The look on Harri's face was a good enough answer. 'The moment I mentioned the blasted word, he knew what I was trying to do! The only thing I learnt was that he did actually admit to telling my uncle about them. But it's not like that helps. The only thing that will help is me actually getting that memory...but how?'

'I say you should let him cool off then start sucking up to him again. Buy him presents...' began Ron, but Harri cut him off.

'That won't work,' Harri said bluntly. 'My methods are too much like my uncle's and he said that he had a lot of experience with Uncle Tom sucking up to him. I'll need to find another way,' she added as she entered the classroom.

* * *

For many days Harri brooded over her current dilemma, paying no heed to her school work, vision or Draco's problems. All she could think about was Slughorn's memory, but little did she know that she was going to have even more problems to deal with. Sadly the problems began on Ron's seventeenth birthday.

'Happy birthday, Ron,' Harri said cheerfully as she walked towards him at the Gryffindor table. She was carrying a package in one arm and she used the other to give Ron a birthday hug. 'Have a present.'

She then placed the package in front of him, before sitting down next to Draco.

'Cheers,' said Ron cheerfully, and as he ripped off the paper before exclaiming, 'Nice one, Harri!' as he waved the new pair of Quidditch Keeper's gloves Harri had given him.

'No problem,' smiled Harri as a fifth year boy came up to her carrying a box of chocolates.

'Harrietta?' The boy asked nervously, with a sideward glance at Draco, who frowning slightly.

'Yes?'

'My brother wanted me to give you these,' he said, not taking his eyes off Draco.

'Why?'

'It's a congratulation present for winning your first game as captain.'

'How sweet. That's very nice of him,' said Harri, accepting the chocolates.

'Yeah, but why would he do something like that?' Asked a suspicious Draco, eyes narrowing. 'Was there anything else to that message?'

The boy gulped.

'Um, yes. He, er, he said if you ever get tired of dating a – a slimy snake, to look him up.' The boy was eyeing Draco warily.

'Tell him thanks for the chocolates,' Harri said quickly as Draco's eye flashed.

The boy nodded to Harri and fled the Hall. Draco's eyes followed him out.

'Help yourselves guys,' Harri said, throwing the box of chocolates on the table before turning to Draco. Out the corner of her eye she could see Ron beginning to eat some. Only Ron could eat chocolate for breakfast. 'You're not going to go and curse that boy, are you?'

'It's not the boy I'm angry with. It's the brother! I'm not someone that kills the messenger.' Growled Draco, before standing up abruptly. 'You coming, Ron?' He added.

'Yep. Hey Harri, can I take these chocolates?' Said Ron. 'They're really good!'

'Be my guest,' answered Harri. She had had enough chocolate to last her for a very long time. She had Remus to thank for that in her third year. Once Draco and Ron had left the Hall, she turned to her other friends. 'Where are they going?'

'Ron wanted to talk to Draco about Lavender, while practicing Quidditch,' explained Neville. 'Somehow, I think that we'll no longer have to see them glued together anymore.'

Ron and Draco joined them again at lunch time, but what was weird was the fact that Draco looked worried and angry, and was dragging Ron along after him, and holding Harri's chocolates, or what was left of them, in his other hand. He let go of Ron once they were standing behind Harri. Ron kept looking around the Hall for someone.

'What's happened?' Harri asked at once.

'Your secret admirer, Daniel, the one who gave you the chocolates now has a love sick Ron after him,' Draco said quietly. Many people in the Hall were looking over at them. 'He spiked them with love potion.'

'Great. Come on, let's take him to Slughorn.' Sighed Harri.

'Why Slughorn?' Asked Draco.

'Uncle Sev is out with Aurora, Madam Pomfrey is already busy with some stupid second year and why bother her with something like this.' Answered Harri.

'What about you? Why don't you make it?'

'I've never made one before and if I accidently muck it up, I could make it worse. So that leaves Slughorn.'

'You take him,' said Draco. 'I've got some business to take care of.'

'Draco,' Harri said warningly. She knew that he was going to track this "Daniel" down.

'Don't worry. I won't hurt him...much.' With that Draco left.

'Do you need us to come with you?' Asked Neville.

'Nah, you guys get to class and tell Professor Flitwick where we are.' Said Harri, looking over at Ron, who was now getting annoyed.

'How are you going to get him to Slughorn's?' Asked Hermione.

'Like this; hey Ron, Draco told me about Daniel. Would you like to meet him?' Harri asked, making her other friends gasp.

'You know him?' Asked an excited Ron.

'Of course. He's with Professor Slughorn at the moment. Silly fool. I never could understand why he choose to do potions when he is terrible at them,' smiled Harri, taking Ron's hand and leading him out of the Hall. She winked at her other friends.

'Harri,' Slughorn said uncertainly, when he answered his office door. 'What a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you?'

'Professor, I'm really sorry to disturb you,' said Harri as quietly as possible, while Ron stood on tiptoe, attempting to see past Slughorn into his room, 'but my friend Ron's swallowed a love potion by mistake. You couldn't make him an antidote, could you? I'd take him to Madam Pomfrey, but we're not supposed to have anything from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and, you know ... awkward questions...'

'I'd have thought you could have whipped him up a remedy, Harri, an expert potioneer like yourself?' asked Slughorn.

'Er,' said Harri, somewhat distracted by the fact that Ron was now elbowing her in the ribs in an attempt to force his way into the room, 'well, I've never mixed an antidote for a love potion, sir, and by the time I get it right Ron might've done something serious, -'

Helpfully, Ron chose this moment to moan, 'I can't see him. Harri - is he hiding him?'

'Was this potion within date?' asked Slughorn, now eyeing Ron with professional interest. 'They can strengthen, you know, the longer they're kept.'

'That would explain a lot,' panted Harri, now positively wrestling with Ron to keep him from knocking Slughorn over. 'It's his birthday, Professor,' she added imploringly.

'Oh, all right, come in, then, come in,' said Slughorn, relenting. 'I've got the necessary here in my bag, it's not a difficult antidote ...'

Ron burst through the door into Slughorn's overheated, crowded study, tripped over a tasselled footstool, regained his balance by seizing Harri around the neck and muttered, 'He didn't see that, did he?'

'He's not here yet,' said Harri, watching Slughorn opening his potion kit and adding a few pinches of this and that to a small crystal bottle.

'That's good,' said Ron fervently. 'How do I look?'

'Very handsome,' said Slughorn smoothly, handing Ron a glass of clear liquid. 'Now drink that up, it's a tonic for the nerves, keep you calm when he arrives, you know,'

'Brilliant,' said Ron eagerly, and he gulped the antidote down noisily.

Harri and Slughorn watched him. For a moment, Ron beamed at them. Then, very slowly, his grin sagged and vanished, to be replaced by an expression of utmost horror.

'Back to normal, then?' said Harri, grinning, nearly on the verge of laughing. Slughorn chuckled. 'Thanks a lot, Professor.'

'Don't mention it, m'dear, don't mention it,' said Slughorn, as Ron collapsed into a nearby armchair, looking devastated. 'Pick-me-up, that's what he needs,' Slughorn continued, now-bustling over to a table loaded with drinks. 'I've got Butter-beer, I've got wine, I've got one last bottle of this oak-matured mead ... hmm ... meant to give that to Albus for Christmas ... ah well ...' he shrugged '... he can't miss what he's never had! Why don't we open it now and celebrate Mr Weasley's birthday? Nothing like a fine spirit to chase away the pangs of disappointed love ...'

He chortled again and Harri joined in. This was the first time she had found himself almost alone with Slughorn since her disastrous first attempt to extract the true memory from him. Perhaps, if she could just keep Slughorn in a good mood ... perhaps if they got through enough of the oak-matured mead...

'There you are, then,' said Slughorn, handing Harri and Ron a glass of mead each, before raising his own. 'Well, a very happy birthday, Ralph -'

'- Ron -' whispered Harri.

But Ron, who did not appear to be listening to the toast, had already thrown the mead into his mouth and swallowed it. There was one second, hardly more than a heartbeat, in which Harri knew immediately that there was something terribly wrong and Slughorn, it seemed, did not.

'- and may you have many more –'

'Ron!' Yelled a panicked Harri, dropping her glass - which smashed to a thousand pieces – and caught him before he hit the ground. His extremities jerking uncontrollably. Foam was dribbling from his mouth and his eyes were bulging from their sockets.

'Professor!' Harri yelled. 'Do something!'

But Slughorn seemed paralysed by shock. Ron twitched and choked: his skin was turning blue.

'What - but -' spluttered Slughorn.

Harri quickly laid Ron down and leapt over a low table, sprinting towards Slughorn's open potion kit, pulling out jars and pouches, while the terrible sound of Ron's gargling breath filled the room. Then she found it - the shrivelled kidney-like stone – a bezour. She hurtled back to Ron's side, wrenched open his jaw and thrust the bezoar into his mouth. Ron gave a great shudder, a rattling gasp and his body became limp and still.

Harri sat there, shaking with fear, as she cradled Ron's head in her lap. She barely became aware of Slughorn coming to his senses and calling for help. She became aware of everything again, as Minerva gently pulled her away from Ron's unconscious body.

'Harri, can you please meet me in my office?' Albus said gently. Harri nodded her head and left with Minerva. She couldn't believe that she nearly lost one of her closes friends.

Minutes later, Harri was explaining everything to her grandparents, before she went to the Hospital Wing to check on Ron. When she entered, she was surprised to see Fred, George, Ginny, Draco and Hermione already sitting there.

'So, all in all, not one of Ron's better birthdays?' said Fred as Harri took a seat next to Draco, who automatically put his arm around her shoulders.

There were two other occupants in the hospital wing. A Gryffindor fsecond year was in the bed at the far end of wing and while a seventh year Ravenclaw was being seen to by Madam Pomfrey.

'Yeah, this isn't how we imagined handing over our present,' said George grimly, putting down a large wrapped gift on Ron's bedside cabinet and sitting beside Ginny.

'Yeah, when we pictured the scene, he was conscious,' said Fred, before turning to Harri. 'How exactly did it happen, Harri?'

Harri quickly recounted what had happened.

'...and then I got the bezoar down his throat and his breathing eased up a bit, Slughorn ran for help, my grandparents and Madam Pomfrey turned up, and they brought Ron up here."

'Blimey, it was lucky you thought of a bezoar,' said George in a low voice.

'Lucky there was one in the room,' said Harri, who kept turning cold at the thought of what would have happened if she had not been able to lay hands on the little stone.

Hermione gave an almost inaudible sniff during a pause while they all watched Ron mumble a little in his sleep.

'So the poison was in the drink?' Asked Fred quietly.

'Yes,' Harri answered sadly. 'Slughorn poured it out -'

'Would he have been able to slip something into Ron's glass without you seeing?'

'I doubt it. I was watching him the entire time.' said Harri, "but even if he had, why would Slughorn want to poison Ron?'

'No idea,' said Fred, frowning. 'You don't think he could have mixed up the glasses by mistake? Meaning to get you?'

'Why would Slughorn want to poison Harri?' asked Ginny. 'Especially when it is right under her grandfather's nose.'

'I dunno,' said Fred, 'but there must be loads of people who'd like to poison Harri, mustn't there? "The Chosen One" and all that?'

'So you think Slughorn's a Death Eater?' said a sceptical Ginny.

'Anything's possible,' said Fred darkly.

'He could be under the Imperious Curse,' said George.

'Or he could be innocent,' said Ginny. 'The poison could have been in the bottle, in which case it was probably meant for Slughorn himself.'

'Who'd want to kill Slughorn?'

'Grandfather reckons Uncle Voldemort wanted Slughorn on his side,' answered Harri. 'Slughorn was in hiding for a year before he came to Hogwarts. And...' She thought of the memory Albus had not yet been able to extract from Slughorn. 'And maybe Uncle Voldemort wants him out of the way; maybe he thinks he could be valuable to Grandfather. But I seriously doubt it. Slughorn said that he was meant to give the mead to Grandfather.' Draco looked at her quickly, expression unreadable.

'So you think the poisoner could have been after Albus?' Asked George.

'Then the poisoner didn't know Slughorn very well,' said Hermione, speaking for the first time sounding as though she had a bad head cold. 'Anyone who knew Slughorn would have known there was a good chance he'd keep something that tasty for himself.'

'Er-my-nee,' croaked Ron unexpectedly from between them.

They all fell silent, watching him anxiously, but after muttering incomprehensibly for a moment he merely started snoring.

The dormitory doors flew open, making them all jump: Hagrid came striding toward them, his hair rain-flecked, his bearskin coat flapping behind him, a crossbow in his hand, leaving a trail of muddy dolphin-sized footprints all over the floor.

'Bin in the forest all morning!' he panted. 'Aragog's worse, I bin readin' to him — didn' get up ter lunch till jus' now an' then Professor Sprout told me abou' Ron! How is he?'"

'Not bad,' said Harri. 'They say he'll be okay.'

'I don' believe this,' said Hagrid hoarsely, shaking his great shaggy head as he stared down at Ron. 'Jus' don' believe it... Look at him lyin' there. . . . Who'd want ter hurt him, eh?'

'That's just what we were discussing,' said Harri. 'We don't know.'

'Someone couldn' have a grudge against the Gryffindor Quidditch team, could they?' said Hagrid anxiously. 'Firs' Katie, now Ron...'

'I can't see anyone trying to bump off a Quidditch team,' said George.

'Wood might've done the Slytherins if he could've got away with it,' said Fred fairly.

'Well, I don't think it's Quidditch, but I think there's a connection between the attacks,' said Hermione quietly.

'How d'you work that out?' asked Fred.

'Well, for one thing, they both ought to have been fatal and weren't, although that was pure luck. And for another, neither the poison nor the necklace seems to have reached the person who was supposed to be killed. Of course,' she added broodingly, 'that makes the person behind this even more dangerous in a way, because they don't seem to care how many people they finish off until they actually reach their victim.'

Before anybody could respond to this ominous pronouncement, the dormitory doors opened again and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley hurried up the ward. They had done no more than satisfy themselves that Ron would make a full recovery on their last visit to the ward; now Mrs. Weasley seized hold of Harri and hugged her very tightly.

'Albus told us how you saved him with the bezoar,' she sobbed. 'Oh, Harri, what can we say? You saved Ginny...you saved Arthur...now you've saved Ron...'

'Don't be...I didn't...' muttered an awkward Harri. It's not like she could have just sat there and watched them die when she had the power to save them.

'Half our family does seem to owe you their lives, now I stop and think about it,' Mrs. Weasley said in a constricted voice. 'Well, all I can say is that it was a lucky day for the Weasleys when Ron decided to sit in your compartment on the Hogwarts Express, Harri.'

Harri went red, not knowing what to say, and was glad when Madam Pomfrey came over suggesting that only Ron's family should remain. Draco, Harri, Hermione and Hagrid left immediately.

'It's terrible,' growled Hagrid into his beard, as the four of them walked back along the corridor to the marble staircase. 'All this new security, an kids are still gettin' hurt. . . . Dumbledore's worried sick...He don't say much, but I can tell...'

'Hasn't he got any ideas?' asked Hermione desperately, looking between Hagrid and Harri.

Harri shrugged, but Hagrid answered her.

'I spect he's got hundreds of ideas, brain like his,' said Hagrid. 'But he doesn' know who sent that necklace nor put poison in that wine, or they'dve bin caught, wouldn they? Wha' worries me,' said Hagrid, lowering his voice and glancing over his shoulder (Harri, for good measure, checked the ceiling for Peeves), 'is how long Hogwarts can stay open if kids are bein' attacked. Chamber o' Secrets all over again, isn' it? There'll be panic, more parents takin their kids outta school, an nex' thing yeh know the board o' governors'll be talkin about shuttin' us up fer good.'

Hagrid stopped talking as the Ravenclaw seventh year came out of the hospital wing. He took one look at Draco, before running off.

'What was that all about?' Asked Hermione.

'Let's just say, Daniel and I had a guy to guy conversation,' smirked Draco, turning back to Hagrid. 'You don't honestly believe that the governors would close the school over something like this?

'Gotta see it from their point o' view,' said Hagrid heavily. 'I mean, it's always bin a bit of a risk sendin a kid ter Hogwarts, hasn' it? Yer expect accidents, don' yeh, with hundreds of underage wizards all locked up tergether, but attempted murder, tha's tliff'rent. 'S'no wonder Dumbledore's angry with Sev —'

Hagrid stopped in his tracks, a familiar, guilty expression on what was visible of his face above his tangled black beard.

'What?' A startled Harri asked quickly. 'Grandfather's angry with Uncle Sev?'

'I never said tha',' said Hagrid, though his look of panic could not have been a bigger giveaway.

'Hagrid, why is Albus angry with Uncle Sev?' Demanded Harri.

'Shhhh!' said Hagrid, looking both nervous and angry. 'Don' shout stuff like that, Harri, d'yeh wan' me ter lose me job? Mind, I don' suppose yeh'd care, would yeh, not now yeh've given up Care of Mag—'

'Don't try and make me feel guilty, it won't work!' said Harri forcefully. 'What's Sev done?'

'I dunno, Harri, I shouldn'ta heard it at all! I — well, I was comin' outta the forest the other evenin' an' I overheard 'em talking— well, arguin'. Didn't like ter draw attention to meself, so I sorta skulked an tried not ter listen, but it was a — well, a heated discussion an' it wasn' easy ter block it out.'

'Well?' Harri urged him, as Hagrid shuffled his enormous feet uneasily.

'Well — I jus' heard Severus sayin' Dumbledore took too much fer granted an maybe he — Severus — didn' wan' ter do it any more —'

'Do what?'

'I dunno, Harri, it sounded like Severus was feelin' a bit overworked, tha's all — anyway, Dumbledore told him flat out he'd agreed ter do it an' that was all there was to it. Pretty firm with him. An' then he said summat abou' Severus makin' investigations in his House, in Slytherin. Well, there's nothin' strange abou' that!" Hagrid added hastily, as Harri and Hermione exchanged looks full of meaning, while Draco looked worried. 'All the Heads o' Houses were asked ter look inter that necklace business.'

Hagrid was relieved when Harri just left it at that, before Draco, Hermione and Harri walked off to get some lunch.

The moment Harri stepped into the hall, she was ambushed by Cormac McLaggen.

'There you are, Dumbledore! I saw them taking Weasley up to the hospital wing earlier. Didn't look like he'll be fit for next week's match.'

It took Harri a few moments to realize what McLaggen was talking about.

'Oh . . . right. . . Quidditch,' she said, running a hand wearily through her long midnight black hair. 'Yeah ... he might not make it.'

'Well, then, I'll be playing Keeper, won't I?' said McLaggen.

'Yeah,' said a reluctant Harri. 'Yeah, I suppose so...'

She wasn't able to think of an argument against it; after all, McLaggen had certainly performed second-best in the trials.

'Excellent,' said McLaggen in a satisfied voice. 'So when's practice?'

'There's one tomorrow evening.'

'Good. Listen, Dumbledore, we should have a talk beforehand. I've got some ideas on strategy you might find useful.'

'Right,' Harri said unenthusiastically. 'Well, I'll hear them tomorrow, then. I've got more important things on my mind at the moment.'

McLaggen looked as though he was about to argue, but in the end he agreed and turned to Hermione instead.

* * *

Ron left the hospital wing first thing on Monday morning, restored to full health by the ministrations of Madam Pomfrey and now able to enjoy the benefits of having been knocked out and poisoned, the best of which was that Hermione was friends with Ron again. On top of that Harri had another private lesson with Albus. By the end of the lesson, Harri learnt all about Voldemort's job after school at Borgin and Burkes, before robbing and killing Hepzibah Smith in order to get Slytherin's necklace and the cup of Helga Hufflepuff. She had also learnt that her uncle had approached his father for a job as a teacher but Albus had turned him down.

After that lesson, Harri spent nearly all of her waking time, thinking of ways to persuade Slughorn to part with his most guarded memory. Then one night, as she sat in her room with her friends - minus Draco, who had work to do again - she threw down her quill and exclaimed angrily, 'Argh, it would take all the luck in the world to get him to part with that memory! The memory had better be worth it!'

'I'm sure it will b - Harri, you're a genius!' Exclaimed Ron

'About what?' Asked a startled Harri.

'Luck! Harri, use the Felix Felicis!'

'No Ron, you're the genius!' Exclaimed a happy Harri, leaping to her feet and hurrying over to her cupboard searching for the small potion. 'It's still early, so I'll have a chance to corner him...'

Eventually, Harri came back to her friends holding a tiny, gleaming bottle.

'Well, here goes,' said Harri, and she raised the little bottle and look a carefully measured gulp.

'What does it feel like?' whispered Hermione.

Harri did not answer for a moment. Then, slowly but surely, an exhilarating sense of infinite opportunity stole through her; she felt as though she could have done anything, anything at all... and getting the memory from Slughorn seemed suddenly not only possible, but positively easy...

She got to his feet, smiling, brimming with confidence.

'Excellent,' she said. 'Really excellent. Right. . . I'm going down to Hagrid's.'

'What?' said Neville, Ginny, Luna, Ron and Hermione together, looking aghast.

'No, Harri — you've got to go and see Slughorn, remember?' said Hermione.

'No,' said a confident Harri. 'I'm going to Hagrid's, I've got a good feeling about going to Hagrid's.'

'You've got a good feeling about burying a giant spider?' asked Ron, looking stunned. Hagrid had sent them a letter telling them of Aragog's death.

'Yeah,' said Harri, pulling her Invisibility Cloak out of her wardrobe. 'I feel like it's the place to be tonight, you know what I mean?'

'No,' said the group of friends together, they were all looking positively alarmed now.

'This is Felix Felicis, I suppose?' said Ginny anxiously, holding up the bottle to the light. 'You haven't got another little bottle full of— I don't know —'

'Essence of Insanity?' suggested Ron, as Harri swung her cloak over her shoulders.

'Oh, very funny,' Harri laughed. 'Trust me, I know what I'm doing ... or at least -' she strolled confidently to the door '- Felix does.'

'Let's never give her that potion again,' said Ron as Harri pulled the Invisibility Cloak over her head and set off to Hagrid's, leaving her worried friends behind.

On the way to Hagrid's Harri decided to go for a stroll through the schools vegetable patch. When she arrived she saw Slughorn talking to Professor Sprout. She stopped behind a stone pillar, hiding her from sight - regardless of the fact that she was invisible - but she could hear every word as clearly as though she was standing with them.

'I do thank you for taking the time, Pomona,' Slughorn was saying courteously, 'most authorities agree that they are at their most efficacious if picked at twilight.'

'Oh, I quite agree,' said Professor Sprout warmly. 'That enough for you?'

'Plenty, plenty,' said Slughorn, who was carrying an armful of leafy plants. 'This should allow for a few leaves for each of my third years, and some to spare if anybody over-stews them. . . . Well, good evening to you and many thanks again!'

Professor Sprout headed off into the gathering darkness in the direction of her greenhouses, and Slughorn directed his steps to the spot where Harri stood, invisible. Seized with an immediate desire to reveal herself, Harri pulled off the cloak with a flourish.

'Good evening, Professor.'

'Merlin's beard, Harri, you made me jump,' said Slughorn, stopping dead in his tracks and looking wary. 'How did you get out of the castle?'

'I think Filch must've forgotten to lock the doors,' said Harri cheerfully, and was delighted to see Slughorn scowl. 'But even if the door was locked, I could have easily unlocked it.'

'I'll be reporting that man, he's more concerned about litter than proper security if you ask me...But why are you out then, Harri? You should know the rules better than anyone.'

'Well, sir, it's Hagrid,' said Harri, who knew that the right thing to do just now was to tell the truth. 'He's pretty upset...but you won't tell anyone, Professor? I don't want trouble for him...'

Slughorn's curiosity was evidently aroused. 'Well, I can't promise that,' he said gruffly. 'But I know that Albus trusts Hagrid to the hilt, so I'm sure he can't be up to anything very dreadful...'

'Well, it's this acromantula, he's had it for years...It lived in the forest...It could talk and everything -'

'I heard rumours there were acromantulas in the forest,' said Slughorn softly, looking over at the mass of black trees. 'It's true, then?'

'Yes,' said Harri. 'But this one, Aragog, the first one Hagrid ever got, it died last night. He's devastated. He wants company while he buries it and I said I'd go.'

'Touching, touching,' said Slughorn absentmindedly, his large droopy eyes fixed upon the distant lights of Hagrid's cabin. 'But acromantula venom is very valuable ... If the beast only just died it might not yet have dried out. . . . Of course, I wouldn't want to do anything insensitive if Hagrid is upset. . . but if there was any way to procure some ... I mean, it's almost impossible to get venom from an acromantula while its alive...' Slughorn seemed to be talking more to himself than Harri now. ". . . seems an awful waste not to collect it... might get a hundred Galleons a pint. ... To be frank, my salary is not large. . .'

And now Harri saw clearly what was to be done. 'Well,' she said, with a most convincing hesitancy, 'well, if you wanted to come, Professor, Hagrid would probably be really pleased. . . Give Aragog a better send-off, you know ...'

'Yes, of course,' said Slughorn, his eyes now gleaming with enthusiasm. 'I tell you what, Harri, I'll meet you down there with a bottle or two. . . . We'll drink the poor beast's — well — not health — but we'll send it off in style, anyway, once it's buried. And I'll change my tie, this one is a little exuberant for the occasion. . .'

He bustled back into the castle, and Harri sped off to Hagrid's, delighted with herself.

'You came,' croaked Hagrid, when he opened the door and saw Harri emerging from the Invisibility Cloak in front of him.

'Yeah — Ron and Hermione couldn't, though,' said Harri. 'They're really sorry.'

'Don — don matter . . . Hed've bin touched yeh're here, though, Harri. . .'

Hagrid gave a great sob. He had made himself a black armband out of what looked like a rag dipped in boot polish, and his eyes were puffy, red, and swollen. Harri patted him consolingly on the elbow, which was the highest point of Hagrid she could easily reach.

'Where are we burying him?' she asked gently. 'The forest?'

'Blimey, no,' said Hagrid, wiping his streaming eyes on the bottom of his shirt. 'The other spiders won' let me anywhere near their webs now Aragog's gone. Turns out it was only on his orders they didn' eat me! Can yeh believe that, Harri?'

The honest answer was "yes"; Harri recalled with painful ease the scene when she and Ron had come face-to-face with the acromantulas. They had been quite clear that Aragog was the only thing that stopped them from eating Hagrid.

'Never bin an area o' the forest I couldn' go before!' said Hagrid, shaking his head. 'It wasn' easy, gettin' Aragog's body out o' there, I can tell yeh — they usually eat their dead, see. . . . But I wanted ter give 'im a nice burial... a proper send-off. . .'

He broke into sobs again and Harri resumed the patting of his elbow, saying as she did so, 'Professor Slughorn met me coming down here, Hagrid.'

'Not in trouble, are yeh?' said Hagrid, looking up, alarmed. 'Yeh shouldn' be outta the castle in the evenin', I know it, it's my fault —'

'No, no, when he heard what I was doing he said he'd like to come and pay his last respects to Aragog too,' smiled Harri. 'He's gone to change into something more suitable, I think…and he said he'd bring some bottles so we can drink to Aragog's memory...'

'Did he?' said Hagrid, looking both astonished and touched. 'Tha's — tha's righ' nice of him, that is, an' not turnin' yeh in either. I've never really had a lot ter do with Horace Slughorn before. .. . Comin' ter see old Aragog off, though, eh? Well. . . he'd've liked that, Aragog would. . . .'

Harri thought privately that what Aragog would have liked most about Slughorn was the ample amount of edible flesh he provided, but she merely moved to the rear window of Hagrid's hut, where he saw the rather horrible sight of the enormous dead spider lying on its back outside, its legs curled and tangled.

'Are we going to bury him here, Hagrid, in your garden?'

'Jus' beyond the pumpkin patch, I thought,' said Hagrid in a choked voice. 'I've already dug the — yeh know — grave. Jus' thought we'd say a few nice things over him — happy memories, yeh know —'

His voice quivered and broke. There was a knock on the door, and he turned to answer it, blowing his nose on his great spotted handkerchief as he did so. Slughorn hurried over the threshold, several bottles in his arms, and wearing a sombre black cravat.

'Hagrid,' he said, in a deep, grave voice. 'So very sorry to hear of your loss.'

'Tha's very nice of yeh,' said Hagrid. 'Thanks a lot. An' thanks fer not givin Harri detention neither. . .'

'Wouldn't have dreamed of it,' said Slughorn. 'Sad night, sad night. . . Where is the poor creature?'

'Out here,' said Hagrid in a shaking voice. 'Shall we — shall we do it, then?'

The three of them stepped out into the back garden. The moon was glistening palely through the trees now, and its rays mingled with the light spilling from Hagrid's window to illuminate Aragog's body lying on the edge of a massive pit beside a ten-foot- high mound of freshly dug earth.

'Magnificent,' said Slughorn, approaching the spiders head, where eight milky eyes stared blankly at the sky and two huge, curved pincers shone, motionless, in the moonlight. Harri heard the tinkle of bottles as Slughorn bent over the pincers, apparently examining the enormous hairy head, but Harri knew better.

'Not ev'ryone appreciates how beau'iful they are' said Hagrid to Slughorn's back, tears leaking from the corners of his crinkled eyes. 'I didn' know yeh were interested in creatures like Aragog, Horace.'

'Interested? My dear Hagrid, I revere them,' said Slughorn, stepping back from the body. Harri's keen eyes saw the glint of a bottle disappear beneath his cloak. Harri gave him a disapproving look. 'Now . . . shall we proceed to the burial?'

Hagrid nodded and moved forward. He heaved the gigantic spider into his arms and, with an enormous grunt, rolled it into the dark pit. It hit the bottom with a rather horrible, crunchy thud. Hagrid started to cry again.

'Of course, it's difficult for you, who knew him best,' said Slughorn, who like Harri could reach no higher than Hagrid's elbow, but patted it all the same. 'Why don't I say a few words? - Farewell, Aragog, king of arachnids, whose long and faithful friendship those who knew you won't forget! Though your body will decay, your spirit lingers on in the quiet, web-spun places of your forest home. May your many-eyed descendants ever flourish and your human friends find solace for the loss they have sustained.'

'Tha was . . . tha was . . . beau'iful!' howled Hagrid, and he collapsed onto the compost heap, crying harder than ever. Harri was immediately at his side.

'There, there,' said Slughorn, waving his wand so that the huge pile of earth rose up and then fell, with a muffled sort of crash, onto the dead spider, forming a smooth mound. 'Let's get inside and have a drink. Get on his other side, Harri. . . . That's it. ... Up you come, Hagrid . . . Well done ...'

They deposited Hagrid in a chair at the table. Fang, who had been skulking in his basket during the burial, now came padding softly across to them and put his heavy head into Harri's lap as usual. Slughorn uncorked one of the bottles of wine he had brought.

'I have had it all tested for poison,' he assured Harry, pouring most of the first bottle into one of Hagrid's bucket-sized mugs and handing it to Hagrid. 'Had a house-elf taste every bottle after what happened to your poor friend Rupert.'

Harri gave another disapproving look, and not because he got Ron's name wrong. How dare he use a house-elf like that! Why didn't he use a number of spells to check for poison instead?

'One for Harri...' said Slughorn, dividing a second bottle between two mugs, '. . . and one for me. Well' — he raised his mug high — 'to Aragog.'

'Aragog,' said Harry and Hagrid together. Both Slughorn and Hagrid drank deeply, Harri, however, merely pretended to take a gulp and then set the mug back on the table before her.

'I had him from an egg, yeh know,' said Hagrid morosely. 'Tiny little thing he was when he hatched. 'Bout the size of a Pekingese.'

'Sweet,' said Slughorn.

'Used ter keep him in a cupboard up at the school until . . . well...'

Hagrid's face darkened and Harri knew why: Tom Riddle, otherwise known as Tom Dumbledore, had contrived to have Hagrid thrown out of school, blamed for opening the Chamber of Secrets. Slughorn, however, did not seem to be listening; he was looking up at the ceiling, from which a number of brass pots hung, and also a long, silky skein of bright white hair.

'That's not unicorn hair, Hagrid?'

'Oh, yeah,' said Hagrid indifferently. 'Gets pulled out of their tails, they catch it on branches an' stuff in the forest, yeh know...'

'But my dear chap, do you know how much that's worth?'

'I use it fer bindin' on bandages an stuff if a creature gets injured,' said Hagrid, shrugging. 'It's dead useful. . . very strong.'

Slughorn took another deep draught from his mug, his eyes moving carefully around the cabin now, looking for more treasures that he might be able to convert into a plentiful supply of oak-matured mead, crystallized pineapple, and velvet smoking jackets. He refilled Hagrid's mug and his own, and questioned him about the creatures that lived in the forest these days and how Hagrid was able to look after them all. Hagrid, becoming expansive under the influence of the drink and Slughorn's flattering interest, stopped mopping his eyes and entered happily into a long explanation of bowtruckle husbandry. Neither of them noticed Harri perform a Refilling Charm, when she noticed their drink supply running out fast. She loved non-verbal spells.

After an hour or so, Hagrid and Slughorn began making extravagant toasts: to Hogwarts, to Albus, to elf-made wine, and to-

'Harrietta Dumbledore!' bellowed Hagrid, slopping some of his fourteenth bucket of wine down his chin as he drained it.

'Yes, indeed,' cried Slughorn a little thickly, 'Darri Humbledore, the Chosen Girl Who - well - something of that sort," he mumbled, and drained his mug too.

It took all of Harri's strength not to laugh. She had never seen drunk people before.

Not long after this, Hagrid became tearful again and pressed the whole unicorn tail upon Slughorn, who pocketed it with cries of, 'To friendship! To generosity! To ten Galleons a hair!'

And for a while after that, Hagrid and Slughorn were sitting side by side, arms around each other, singing a slow sad song about a dying wizard called Odo.

'Aaargh, the good die young,' muttered Hagrid, slumping low onto the table, a little cross-eyed, while Slughorn continued to warble the refrain. 'Me dad was no age ter go ... nor were yer mum' an' dad, Harri...' Great fat tears oozed out of the corners of Hagrid's crinkled eyes again; he grasped Harri's arm and shook it. 'Bes' wiz and witchard o' their age…I ever knew... terrible thing...terrible thing...'

'And Odo the hero, they bore him back home, To the place that he'd known as a lad,' sang Slughorn plaintively. 'They laid him to rest with his hat inside out. And his wand snapped in two, which was sad.'

'. . . terrible,' Hagrid grunted, and his great shaggy head rolled sideways onto his arms and he fell asleep, snoring deeply.

'Sorry,' said Slughorn with a hiccup. 'Can't carry a tune to save my life.'

'Hagrid wasn't talking about your singing,' said Harry quietly, though she had to agree that it was terrible. 'He was talking about my mum and dad dying.'

'Oh,' said Slughorn, repressing a large belch. 'Oh dear. Yes, that was — was terrible indeed. Terrible . . . terrible ...'

He looked quite at a loss for what to say, and resorted to refilling their mugs.

'I don't — don't suppose you remember it, Harri?' he asked awkwardly.

'Not really — well, I was only one when they died,' said Harri, her eyes on the flame of the candle flickering in Hagrid's heavy snores. Her eyes were a little wet. She had never really talked about her parents, except to Remus in her dementor lessons. 'But I've found out pretty much what happened since. My dad died first. Did you know that?'

'I — I didn't,' said Slughorn in a hushed voice.

'Yeah . . . Uncle Voldemort murdered him and then stepped over his body toward my mum,' said Harri.

Slughorn gave a great shudder, but he did not seem able to tear his horrified gaze away from Harri's face.

'He told her to get out of the way,' said Harry remorselessly. 'He told me she needn't have died. He only wanted me. She could have run.'

'Oh dear,' breathed Slughorn. 'She could have . . . she needn't . . . That's awful. . . .'

'It is, isn't it?' said Harri, in a voice barely more than a whisper. 'But she didn't move. Dad was already dead, but she didn't want me to go too. She tried to plead with my uncle. . . but he just laughed...'

'That's enough!' said Slughorn suddenly, raising a shaking hand. 'Really, my dear, enough . . . I'm an old man ... I don't need to hear ... I don't want to hear ...'

'I forgot,' lied Harri. 'You liked her, didn't you?'

'Liked her?' said Slughorn, his eyes brimming with tears once more. 'I don't imagine anyone who met her wouldn't have liked her. . . . Very brave . . . Very funny... It was the most horrible thing. ...'

'But you won't help her daughter,' said Harri, turning away from the candle and looking Slughorn directly in the eyes. 'She gave me her life, but you won't give me a memory.'

'Don't say that,' he whispered, unable to break away from her gaze. 'It isn't a question ... If it was to help you, of course . . . but no purpose can be served . . .'

'It can,' said Harri clearly. 'Grandfather needs information. I need information.' After a slightest hesitation, she continued, 'I am the Chosen One. I have to kil-defeat him. I need that memory.'

Slughorn turned paler than ever; his shiny forehead gleamed with sweat.

'You are the Chosen One?'

'Of course I am,' said Harri calmly.

'But then . . . my dear. . . you're asking a great deal. . . you're asking me, in fact, to aid you in your attempt to destroy-'

'You don't want to get rid of the wizard who killed Lily Evans?'

Harri, Harri, of course I do, but —'

'You're scared he'll find out you helped me?'

Slughorn said nothing; he looked terrified.

'Be brave like my mother, Professor. . .'

Slughorn raised a pudgy hand and pressed his shaking fingers to his mouth; he looked for a moment like an enormously overgrown baby.

'I am not proud. . .' he whispered through his fingers. 'I am ashamed of what — of what that memory shows. ... I think I may have done great damage that day...'

'You'd cancel out anything you did by giving me the memory,' Harri said firmly. 'It would be a very brave and noble thing to do.'

Very slowly, Slughorn put his hand in his pocket and pulled out his wand. He put his other hand inside his cloak and took out a small, empty bottle. Still looking into Harri's eyes, Slughorn touched the tip of his wand to his temple and withdrew it, so that a long, silver thread of memory came away too, clinging to the wand tip. Longer and longer the memory stretched until it broke and swung, silvery bright, from the wand. Slughorn lowered it into the bottle where it coiled, then spread, swirling like gas. He corked the bottle with a trembling hand and then passed it across the table to Harri.

Thank you very much, Professor.'

'You're a good girl,' said Professor Slughorn, tears trickling down his fat cheeks into his walrus moustache. 'And you've got her eyes. . . . Just don't think too badly of me once you've seen it. . . .'

And he too put his head on his arms, gave a deep sigh, and fell asleep.

Harri waited the briefest of moments, to make sure he was definitely asleep, before she patted Fang's head and torn out of Hagrid's hut, invisibility cloak in hand and ran to her grandparent's quarters. Once at the portrait, she said the password and ran to their bedroom door before knocking.

'Enter,' came a groogy reply as a light came on.

Harri entered.

'Harri? What are you doing here at this time of night? Is something wrong?' Asked Minerva, hurrying over to her.

'Everything's great, Grandmother. Better than great, in fact,' smiled Harri turning her attention to Albus, who remained sitting on the bed. 'I got it. I got the memory from Slughorn!' She said, showing him the tiny bottle that held the memory.

Minerva just looked confused, whereas Albus was suddenly wide awake and went toput a robe over his pyjamas.

'Harri, this is spectacular new!' He exclamined happily. 'Very well done indeed! I knew you could do it!'

He then said goodbye to Minerva and led Harri to his office. Minerva just stood there wondering if that had actually happened or if she had dreamed it.

The moment they arrived in the headmaster's office, Albus went over to his Pensieve.

'And now,' said Dumbledore, placing the stone basin upon the desk and emptying the contents of the bottle into it. 'Now, at last we shall see. Harri, quickly . . .'

Harri bowed obediently over the Pensieve and felt her feet leave the office floor. . . . Once again she fell through darkness and landed in Horace Slughorn's office many years before. There was the much younger Slughorn, with his thick, shiny, straw-coloured hair and his gingery-blond moustache, sitting again in the comfortable winged armchair in his office, his feet resting upon a velvet pouffe, a small glass of wine in one hand, the other rummaging in a box of crystallized pineapple. And there were the half dozen teenage boys sitting around Slughorn with Tom Dumbledore in the midst of them, Marvolo's gold-and-black ring gleaming on his finger.

Albus landed beside Harri just as Tom asked, 'Sir, is it true that Professor Merrythought is retiring?'

'Tom, Tom, if I knew I couldn't tell you,' said Slughorn, wagging his finger reprovingly at Tom, though winking at the same time. 'I must say, I'd like to know where you get your information, boy, more knowledgeable than half the staff, you are.'

Tom smiled; the other boys laughed and cast him admiring looks. Harri thought that he had probably overheard her grandparents talking about it.

'What with your uncanny ability to know things you shouldn't, and your careful flattery of the people who matter — thank you for the pineapple, by the way, you're quite right, it is my favourite —' Several of the boys tittered again. '— I confidently expect you to rise to Minister of Magic within twenty years. Fifteen, if you keep sending me pineapple, I have excellent contacts at the Ministry.'

Tom merely smiled as the others laughed again. It was then that Harri noticed that Tom was by no means the eldest of the group of boys, but that they all seemed to look to him as their leader.

'I don't know that politics would suit me, sir,' Tom said when the laughter had died away. 'I don't have the right kind of background, for one thing.'

A couple of the boys around him smirked at each other. Harri was sure they were enjoying a private joke, undoubtedly about what they knew, or suspected, regarding their gang leader's famous ancestor.

'Nonsense,' said Slughorn briskly, 'couldn't be plainer you come from decent Wizarding stock, abilities like yours. No, you'll go far, Tom, I've never been wrong about a student yet.'

The small golden clock standing upon Slughorn's desk chimed eleven o'clock behind him and he looked around.

'Good gracious, is it that time already? You'd better get going boys, or we'll all be in trouble. Lestrange, I want your essay by in morrow or it's detention. Same goes for you, Avery.'

One by one, the boys filed out of the room. Slughorn heaved himself out of his armchair and carried his empty glass over to his desk. A movement behind him made him look around; Tom was still standing there.

'Look sharp, Tom, you don't want to be caught out of bed out of hours, and you a prefect.. .'

'Uncle Horace,' Tom began, startling Harri, before she remembered the Slughorn was a good friend of Albus'. 'I wanted to ask you something.'

'Ask away, then, m'boy, ask away. . . .'

'I wondered what you know about. . . about Horcruxes?'

Slughorn stared at him, his thick ringers absentmindedly clawing the stem of his wine glass.

'Project for Defence Against the Dark Arts, is it?'

Harri could tell that Slughorn knew perfectly well that this was not schoolwork.

'Not exactly, Uncle,' admitted Tom. 'I came across the term while reading and I didn't fully understand it.'

'No . . . well. . . you'd be hard-pushed to find a book at Hogwarts that'll give you details on Horcruxes, Tom, that's very Dark stuff, very Dark indeed,' said Slughorn.

'But you obviously know all about them? I mean, a wizard like you — sorry, I mean, if you can't tell me, obviously — I just knew if anyone could tell me, you could — so I just thought I'd –'

It was very well done, thought Harri, the hesitancy, the casual tone, the careful flattery, none of it overdone. Harri had had too much experience of trying to wheedle information out of reluctant people not to recognize a master at work. Maybe that's where she got her ability from. She could also tell that her uncle wanted the information very, very much; perhaps had been working toward this moment for weeks.

'Well,' said Slughorn, not looking at Tom, but fiddling with the ribbon on top of his box of crystallized pineapple, 'well, it can't hurt to give you an overview, of course. Just so that you understand t he term. A Horcrux is the word used for an object in which a per-son has concealed part of their soul.'

'I don't quite understand how that works, though,' said Tom

.

His voice was carefully controlled, but Harri could sense his excitement.

'Well, you split your soul, you see,' said Slughorn, 'and hide part of it in an object outside the body. Then, even if one's body is attacked or destroyed, one cannot die, for part of the soul remains earthbound and undamaged. But of course, existence in such a form ...'

Slughorn's face crumpled and Harri found herself remembering words her uncle Voldemort had said nearly two years before: "I was ripped from my body, I was less than spirit, less than the meanest ghost. . . but still, I was alive." Did this mean that Voldemort had made one of these Horcruxes.

'... few would want it, Tom, very few. Death would be preferable.'

But Tom's hunger was now apparent; his expression was greedy, he could no longer hide his longing.

'How do you split your soul?'

'Well,' said Slughorn uncomfortably, 'you must understand that the soul is supposed to remain intact and whole. Splitting it is an act of violation, it is against nature.'

'But how do you do it?'

'By an act of evil — the supreme act of evil. By committing murder. Killing rips the soul apart. The wizard intent upon creating a Horcrux would use the damage to his advantage: He would encase the torn portion —'

'Encase? But how — ?'

'There is a spell, do not ask me, I don't know!' said Slughorn shaking his head like an old elephant bothered by mosquitoes. 'Do I look as though I have tried it — do I look like a killer?'

No, of course not, Uncle,' said Tom quickly. 'I'm sorry ... I didn't mean to offend . . .'

'Not at all, not at all, not offended,' said Slughorn gruffly, 'It is natural to feel some curiosity about these things. . . . Wizards of a certain calibre have always been drawn to that aspect of magic. . . .'

'Yes,' said Tom. 'What I don't understand, though — just out of curiosity — I mean, would one Horcrux be much use? Can you only split your soul once? Wouldn't it be better, make you stronger, to have your soul in more pieces, I mean, for instance, isn't seven the most powerfully magical number, wouldn't seven — ?'

'Merlin's beard, Tom!' yelped Slughorn. 'Seven! Isn't it bad enough to think of killing one person? And in any case . . . bad enough to divide the soul . . . but to rip it into seven pieces . . .'

Slughorn looked deeply troubled now: He was gazing at Tom as though he had never seen him plainly before. Clearly he hadn't expected to have a conversation like this with his friend's talented and fine son.

'Of course,' he muttered, 'this is all hypothetical, what we're discussing, isn't it? All academic . . .'

'Of course, Uncle,' chuckled Tom, frowning at Slughorn as though he was mad to think otherwise.

'But all the same, Tom . . . keep it quiet, what I've told — that's to say, what we've discussed. People wouldn't like to think we've been chatting about Horcruxes. It's a banned subject at Hogwarts, you know. . . . your father's particularly fierce about it...'

'I know, that's why I came to you. But don't worry, Uncle...I won't say a word,' smiled Tom, and he left, but not before Harri had glimpsed his face, which was full happiness, the sort of happiness that did not enhance his handsome features, but made them, somehow, less human. . . .

'Thank you, Harri,' Albus said quietly. 'Let us go. . . .'

When Harri landed back on the office floor Albus was already sitting down behind his desk. Harri sat too and waited for her grandfather to speak.

'I have been hoping for this piece of evidence for a very long time,' said Albus at last, sounding slightly upset. 'It confirms the theory on which I have been working, it tells me that I am right, and also how very far there is still to go...'

Harri suddenly noticed that every single one of the old head-masters and headmistresses in the portraits around the walls was awake and listening in on their conversation. A corpulent, red nosed wizard had actually taken out an ear trumpet.

'Well, Harri,' said Albus, 'I am sure you understood the significance of what we just heard. At the same age as you are now, give or take a few months, Tom was doing all he could to find out how to make himself immortal.'

'He succeeded, didn't he?' Harri asked. 'He made a Horcrux? And that's why he didn't die when he attacked me? He had a Horcrux hidden somewhere? A bit of his soul was safe?'

'A bit... or more,' said Albus. 'You heard Voldemort, what he particularly wanted from Horace was an opinion on what would happen to the wizard who created more than one Horcrux, what would happen to the wizard so determined to evade death that he would be prepared to murder many times, rip his soul repeatedly, so as to store it in many, separately concealed Horcrux. No book would have given him that information. As far as I know — as far, I am sure, as Voldemort knew — no wizard had ever done more than tear his soul in two.'

Albus paused for a moment, marshalling his thought, and then said, 'Four years ago, I received what I considered certain proof that Voldemort had split his soul.'

'You did? How?'

'You handed it to me, Harri,' said Albus. "The diary, Tom's diary, the one giving instructions on how to reopen the Chamber of Secrets.'

'I don't understand,' said Harri.

'Well, although I did not see the Tom who came out of the diary, what you described to me was a phenomenon I had never witnessed. A mere memory starting to act and think for itself? A mere memory, sapping the life out of the girl into whose hands it had fallen? No, something much more sinister had lived inside that book. ... a fragment of soul, I was almost sure of it. The diary had been a Horcrux. But this raised as many questions as it answered. What intrigued and alarmed me most was that that diary had been intended as a weapon as much as a safeguard.'

'I still don't understand.'

'Well, it worked as a Horcrux is supposed to work — in other words, the fragment of soul concealed inside it was kept safe and had undoubtedly played its part in preventing the death of its owner. But there could be no doubt that Riddle really wanted that diary read, wanted the piece of his soul to inhabit or possess some-body else, so that Slytherin's monster would be unleashed again.'

'Well, he didn't want his hard work to be wasted,' said Harri disdainfully. 'He wanted people to know he was Slytherin's heir, because he couldn't take credit at the time.'

'Quite correct,' said Albus, nodding. 'But don't you see, Harri, that if he intended the diary to be passed to, or planted on, some future Hogwarts student, he was being remarkably blasé about that precious fragment of his soul concealed within it. The point of a Horcrux is, as Professor Slughorn explained, to keep part of the self hidden and safe, not to fling it into somebody else's path and run the risk that they might destroy it — as indeed happened: That particular fragment of soul is no more; you saw to that. The careless way in which Voldemort regarded this Horcrux seemed most ominous to me. It suggested that he must have made — or had been planning to make — more Horcruxes, so that the loss of his first would not be so detrimental. I did not wish to believe it - what parent would? -, but nothing else seemed to make sense. Then you told me, two years later, that on the night that Voldemort returned to his body, he made a most illuminating and alarming statement to his Death Eaters. "I who have gone further than anybody along the path that leads to immortality." That was what you told me he said. "Further than anybody!" And I thought I knew what that meant, though the Death Eaters did not. He was referring to his Horcruxes, Horcruxes in the plural, Harri, which I don't believe any other wizard has ever had. Yet it fitted: Lord Voldemort has seemed to grow less human with the passing years, and the transformation he had undergone seemed to me to be only explainable if his soul was mutilated beyond the realms of what we might call "usual evil"... But now, Harri, armed with this information, the crucial memory you have succeeded in procuring for us, we are closer to the secret of finishing Lord Voldemort than anyone has ever been before. You heard him, Harri: "Wouldn't it be better, make you stronger, to have your soul in more pieces . . . isn't seven the most powerfully magical number . . ." Isn't seven the most powerfully magical number. Yes, I think the idea of a seven-part soul would greatly appeal to Lord Voldemort.'

'He made seven Horcruxes?' said a horror-struck and disgusted Harri, while several of the portraits on the walls made similar noises of shock mid outrage. 'But they could be anywhere in the world — hidden — buried or invisible —'

'I am glad to see you appreciate the magnitude of the problem,' said Dumbledore calmly. 'But firstly, no, Harri, not seven Horcruxes: six. The seventh part of his soul, however maimed, resides inside his regenerated body. That was the part of him that lived a spectral existence for so many years during his exile; without that, he has no self at all. That seventh piece of soul will be the last that anybody wishing to kill Voldemort must attack — the piece that lives in his body.'

'But the six Horcruxes, then,' said Harri, a little desperately, 'how are we supposed to find them?'

'You are forgetting . . . you have already destroyed one of them. And I have destroyed another.'

'You have?' said Harri eagerly.

'Yes indeed,' said Albus, and he raised his blackened, burned-looking hand. 'The ring. Marvolo's ring. And a terrible curse there was upon it too. Had it not been — forgive me the lack of seemly modesty — for my own prodigious skill, and for Severus' timely action when I returned to Hogwarts, desperately injured, I might not have lived to tell the tale.'

Harri was shocked by that piece of information. Severus knew what had happened, yet he never said anything.

'However, a withered hand does not seem an unreasonable exchange for a seventh of Voldemort's soul. The ring is no longer a Horcrux.'

'But how did you find it?'

'Well, as you now know, for many years I have made it my business to discover as much as I can about Voldemort's past life. I have travelled widely, visiting those places he once knew. I stumbled across the ring hidden in the ruin of the Gaunt's house. It seems that once Voldemort had succeeded in sealing a piece of his soul in side it, he did not want to wear it anymore. He hid it, protected by many powerful enchantments, in the shack where his ancestors had once lived never guessing that I might one day take the trouble to visit the ruin, or that I might be keeping an eye open for traces of magical concealment. However, we should not congratulate ourselves too heartily. You destroyed the diary and I the ring, but if we are right in our theory of a seven-part soul, four Horcruxes remain.'

'Does that mean they could be like Portkeys? Objects that can be easily overlooked?'

'Can you honestly imagine Lord Voldemort using tin cans or old potion bottles to guard his own precious soul? You are forgetting what I have showed you. Lord Voldemort liked to collect trophies, and he preferred objects with a powerful magical history His pride, his belief in his own superiority, his determination to carve for himself a startling place in magical history; these things, suggest to me that Voldemort would have chosen his Horcrux with some care, favouring objects worthy of the honour.'

'The diary wasn't that special.' Harri said pointedly.

'The diary, as you have said yourself, was proof that he was the Heir of Slytherin. I am sure that Voldemort considered it of stupendous importance.'

'So, the other Horcruxes?' said a still not convinced Harri. 'Do you think you know what they are?'

'I can only guess,' said Albus. 'For the reasons I have already given, I believe that Lord Voldemort would prefer objects that, in themselves, have a certain grandeur. I have therefore travelled back through Voldemort's past to see if I can find evidence that such artefacts have disappeared around him.'

'The locket!' Harri said loudly, suddenly understanding. 'Hufflepuff's cup!'

'Yes,' said Albus, smiling, 'I would be prepared to bet — perhaps not my other hand — but a couple of fingers, that they became Horcruxes three and four. The remaining two, assuming again that he created a total of six, are more of a problem, but I will hazard a guess that, having secured objects from Hufflepuff and Slytherin, he set out to track down objects owned by Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. Four objects from the four founders would, I am sure, have exerted a powerful pull over Voldemort's imagination. I cannot answer for whether he ever managed to find anything of Ravenclaw's. I am confident, however, that the only known relic of Gryffindor remains safe.' Albus pointed his blackened fingers to the wall behind him, where a ruby-encrusted sword reposed within a glass case.

'Do you think that's why he really wanted to come back to Hogwarts to teach? To try and find something from one of the other founders?'

'My thoughts precisely,' said Albus. 'Though I do have to admit that part of him probably did want to teach, for he use to enjoy tutoring his old friends and he use to say that he wanted to be a teacher like his mother and I when he was younger. Even during that period of time when the twins were growing up, he enjoyed teaching them.' Albus paused for a moment, thinking sadly back to the boy his eldest son use to be, before getting straight back to business. 'Unfortunately, that does not advance us much further, for he was turned away, or so I believe, without the chance to search the school. I am forced to conclude that he never fulfilled his ambition of collecting four founders' objects. He definitely had two — he may have found three — that is the best we can do for now.'

'Even if he got something of Ravenclaw's, that leaves a sixth Horcrux.'

'I think I know what the sixth Horcrux is,' confessed Albus. 'I wonder what you will say when I confess that I have been curious for a while about the behaviour of the snake, Nagini?'

'The snake?' said a startled Harri. 'You can use animals as Horcruxes?'

'Of course. You could even use a human, but it is inadvisable to do so,' said Albus, 'because to confide a part of your soul to something that can think and move for itself is obviously a very risky business. However, if my calculations are correct, Voldemort was still at least one Horcrux short of his goal of six when he entered your parents' house with the intention of killing you. He seems to have reserved the process of making Horcruxes for particularly significant deaths. You would certainly have been that. He believed that in killing you, he was destroying the danger the prophecy had outlined. He believed he was making himself invincible. I am sure that he was intending to make his final Horcrux with your death. As we know, he failed. After an interval of some years, however, he used Nagini to kill an old Muggle man, and it might then have occurred to him to turn her into his last Horcrux. She underlines the Slytherin connection, which enhances Lord Voldemort's mystique; I think he is perhaps as fond of her as he can be of anything; he certainly likes to keep her close, and he seems to have an un-usual amount of control over her, even for a Parselmouth.'

'So,' said Harri, 'the diary's gone, the ring's gone. The cup, the locket, and the snake are still intact, and you think there might be a Horcrux that was once Ravenclaw's. So . . . are you still looking for them? Is that where you've been going when you've been leaving the school?'

'Correct,' said Albus. 'I have been looking for a very long time. I think...perhaps...I may be close to finding another one. There are hopeful signs.'

'And if you do,' Harri asked quickly, 'can I come with you and help get rid of it?'

Albus looked at Harri very intently for a moment before saying, 'Yes, I think so. I think you have earned that right.'

Harri was ecstatic. It was the Valkyrie part of her that was earning for some adventure.

'Does Voldemort know when a Horcrux is destroyed? Can he feel it?' Harri asked as the thought suddenly occurred to her.

'A very interesting question, Harri. I believe not. I believe that Voldemort is now so immersed in evil, and these crucial parts of himself have been detached for so long, he does not feel as we do. Perhaps, at the point of death, he might be aware of his loss...but he was not aware, for instance, that the diary had been destroyed until he forced the truth out of Lucius Malfoy. When Voldemort discovered that the diary had been mutilated and robbed of all its powers, I am told that his anger was terrible to behold.'

'But I thought he meant for Mr Malfoy to smuggle it into Hogwarts?'

'Yes, he did, years ago, when he was sure he would be able to create more Horcruxes, but still Lucius was supposed to wait for Voldemort's say so, and he never received it, for Voldemort vanished shortly after giving him the diary. No doubt he thought that Lucius would not dare do anything with the Horcrux other than guard it carefully, but he was counting too much upon Lucius' fear of a master who had been gone for years and whom Lucius believed dead. Of course, Lucius did not know what the diary really was. I understand that Voldemort had told him the diary would cause the Chamber of Secrets to reopen because it was cleverly enchanted. Had Lucius known he held a portion of his masters soul in his hands, he would undoubtedly have treated it with more reverence — but instead he went ahead and carried out the old plan for his own ends. By planting the diary upon Arthur Weasleys daughter, he hoped to discredit Arthur and get rid of a highly incriminating magical object in one stroke. Ah, poor Lucius...what with Voldemort's fury about the fact that he threw away the Horcrux for his own gain, and the fiasco at the Ministry last year, I would not be surprised if he is not secretly glad to be safe in Azkaban at the moment.'

'So if all of his Horcruxes are destroyed, Voldemort could be killed?'

'Yes, I think so,' said Albus sadly. 'Without his Horcruxes, Voldemort will be a mortal man with a maimed and diminished soul. Never forget, though, that while his soul may be damaged be-yond repair, his brain and his magical powers remain intact. It will take uncommon skill and power to kill a wizard like Voldemort even without his Horcruxes.'

Harri nodded, but she had no intention of killing her uncle. She knew there was good still left in him, and she believed that his sudden change to being evil had something to do with Grindelwald's attack on Diagon Alley, before his sixth year. She knew that if she found out exactly what happened that day, she would be able to save him, as only she could. She was going to make sure her vision came true in order to mend her broken family...

* * *

**Facebook page:** Link on profile  
**Written:** 21 November 2011.


	8. The Horrid Truth

**CHAPTER EIGHT: THE HORRID TRUTH**

The next day, Harri told Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna and Ginny everything that had happened once she had left her bedroom. All of them were thoroughly impressed on how Harri managed to coax the memory out of Slughorn, and they were also positively horrified to learn about Horcruxes and how Voldemort had six. They were also excited and worried about Albus' promise to take Harri along with him to the next Horcrux he found.

'Wow,' said Ron, when Harri had finally finished telling them everything; they were sitting in the Great Hall at Gryffindor table (Harri had casted Muffliato on everyone around them. It was a spell that Severus had invented when he was younger). 'Wow. You're actually going to go with Albus...and try and destroy...wow.'

'I know. I was a little taken back when he agreed to let me go, because it is bound to be dangerous. I guess he realises that I quite capable of looking after my - Katie! You're back!' Harri exclaimed, breaking the Muffiato spell, jumping up and hugging her. 'Are you okay?'

Nearly everyone in the Hall was watching the exchange.

'I'm really well!' she said happily. 'They let me out of St. Mungos on Monday; I had a couple of days at home with Mum and Dad and then came back here this morning. Leanne was just telling me about McLaggen and the last match, Harri...'

'Yeah,' said Harri, remembering back to their last Quidditch match. McLaggen had hit a Bludger at her, hitting her right in the skull. Thankfully she was caught as she fell off her broom. McLaggen didn't enjoy the exchange that happened once she was let out of the Hospital Wing...but the rest of Gryffindor Tower did. 'Well, now you're back and Ron's fit, we'll have a decent chance of thrashing Ravenclaw, which means we could still be in the running for the Cup. Listen, Katie...'

She dropped her voice as Katie's friends started gathering up their things; apparently they were late for Transfiguration.

'...that necklace...can you remember who gave it to you now?'

'No,' said Katie, shaking her head ruefully. 'Everyone's been asking me, but I haven't got a clue. The last thing I remember was walking into the ladies' in the Three Broomsticks.'

'You definitely went into the bathroom, then?' said Hermione, joining Harri and Katie, as did Neville, Luna, Ron and Ginny.

'Well, I know I pushed open the door,' said Katie, 'so I suppose whoever Imperiused me was standing just behind it. After that, my memory's a blank until about two weeks ago in St. Mungo's. Listen, I'd better go, I wouldn't put it past McGonagall to give me lines even if it is my first day back...'

'If she asks why you're late, just tell her you were talking to me,' smiled Harri. She found it quite funny that people saw Minerva as a strict old woman.

'Will do,' Katie said as she caught up her bag and books and hurried after her friends, leaving Harri and her friends to ponder what she had told them.

'So it must have been a girl or a woman who gave Katie the necklace,' said Hermione, once Harri had cast _Muffiato_, 'to be in the ladies' bathroom.'

'Or someone who looked like a girl or a woman,' said Harri. 'Don't forget, there was a cauldron full of Polyjuice Potion at Hogwarts. We know some of it got stolen...'

'It did?' Said her friends.

'Oh, didn't I tell you? Well, I overheard Slughorn tell Grandfather that some of the Polyjuice Potion had been stolen after our lesson.'

'But nobody went near the cauldrons, did they?' Asked Hermione.

Harri shrugged and absentmindedly, pulled out the Maunders Map. She had developed a bad habit of trying to find Draco on the Map when he wasn't with her. Whenever she did this, her friends would look at her sadly. They all missed Draco's company, but none of them missed him as much as Harri did. She missed their conversations, his jokes, his laughter, his smile and overall just his presence as they sat together quietly.

'What's wrong Harri? Can't find him on the Map again?' Asked Luna.

'No, I found him this time, but...he's in the boy's bathroom...'

'Well, when you've got to go, you've got to go,' shrugged Ron, putting some sausage in his mouth.

'...with Moaning Myrtle.'

Ron gasped and the sausage fell from his mouth. The others gasped too.

'Why would Myrtle be there?' Asked Ron.

'I don't know. Maybe she's spying on him, like she did to me and - and Cedric as we tried to figure out that egg.' Said Harri.

Harri stared at the Map for a few moments, before standing up and heading to the boy's bathroom. Once outside the bathroom, she took her Map out to make sure no other boys were in the bathroom. The Map labelled only Draco Malfoy and Moaning Myrtle.

Taking a deep breath, Harri confidently pushed open the door and walked inside. She was unprepared for what she saw. Draco was standing with his back to the door, his hands clutching either side of the sink, his white-blond head bowed.

'Don't,' crooned Moaning Myrtle's voice from one of the cubicles. "Don't. . . tell me what's wrong...I can help you...'

'No one can help me,' said Draco. His whole body was shaking. 'I can't do it...I can't...It won't work...and unless I do it soon... he says he'll kill me...'

And Harri realised, with a shock so huge it seemed to root her to the spot, that Draco was crying — actually crying — tears streaming down his pale face into the grimy basin. She had never seen him like that before.

Harri carefully walked over to him and put her hand gentle on his shoulder, startling Draco. He was that startled that he knocked her back, making her fall to the ground, while drawing his wand and pointing it at her.

'H- Harri?' Draco gasped, lowering his wand the moment he saw who it was.

Harri smiled sadly and got up. Maybe she should have made her footsteps louder.

'What are you doing here? This is the boy's bathroom.' Said Draco, turning away to hide his tears that he desperately began to wipe off his face.

'I've been worried about you. So are Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna and Ginny.' Said Harri, walking towards him once more.

'Well, you don't need to be,' muttered Draco, refusing to meet her eyes.

'Really? Cause hearing you say that someone is going to murder you...'

'Haven't you ever heard of exaggeration before,' lied Draco.

'I know you well enough to know that you weren't exaggerating.'

'Yeah right,' grumbled Draco. He wished that she would just leave.

'There's no need to get narky with me!' Stated Harri, eyes narrowing. 'I'm only worried about you and trying to help! If you tell me, or Uncle Sev or Grandfather, we will be able to help you!'

'I don't need your help,' growled Draco, before storming out of the boys bathroom, to who knows where, leaving a hurt and angry Harri behind.

At first everyone thought that Draco and Harri were pretending to fight again, but then they soon realised that Hogwarts cutest couple were in fact fighting for real. Though no one knew why. Draco had started hanging around the Slytherins again and looked like he was going to fall asleep at any moment, while Harri sat with the Gryffindors and continuously shot Draco worried looks. But all of Harri's worries about Draco were soon pushed from her mind when Albus sent word that he wanted to see her immediately.

Excited, thinking that her grandfather had located enough Horcrux, Harri sped to the headmaster's office. When she entered the office, Fawkes looked round, his bright black eyes gleaming with reflected gold from the sunset beyond the window. Albus was standing at the window looking out at the grounds, a long, black travelling cloak in his arms.

'Well, Harri, I promised that you could come with me.'

'You've found one? You've found a Horcrux?'

'I believe so.'

'Which Horcrux is it? Where is it?'

'I am not sure which it is - though I think we can rule out the snake - but I believe it to be hidden in a cave on the coast many miles from here, a cave in which Tom use to play in when we went on holidays.'

'How is it protected?'

'I do not know; I have suspicions that may be entirely wrong.' Albus hesitated, then said, 'Harri, I promised you that you could come with me, and I stand by that promise, but it would be very wrong of me not to warn you that this will be exceedingly dangerous.'

'I'm coming,' said Harri, almost before Albus had finished speaking.

'I take you with me on one condition,' Albus continued, ignoring her interruption, 'that you obey any command I might give you at once, and without question.'

'Of course.'

'Be sure to understand me, Harri. I mean that you must follow even such orders as "run", "hide" or "go back". Do I have your word?'

'I - yes, of course.'

'If I tell you to hide, you will do so?'

'Yes.'

'If I tell you to flee, you will obey?'

'Yes.'

'If I tell you to leave me, and save yourself, you will do as I tell you?'

'I -'

'Harri?'

They looked at each other for a moment.

'Yes, Grandfather.'

'Very good. Then I wish you to go and fetch your Cloak and meet me in the Entrance Hall in five minutes' time.'

Albus turned back to look out of the fiery window; the sun was now a ruby-red glare along the horizon. Harri walked quickly from the office and down the spiral staircase. As she did so, she had to stop and hold onto the wall to support herself as her vision began to fade. Closing her eyes, Harri watched as Death Eater's walked through the corridors of Hogwarts and amongst them was Draco.

Once Harri's vision was over, she sprinted to her bedroom and grabbed everything she needed, before running to the Gryffindor common room where she knew that she would find her friends.

'What did Albus want?' Hermione said at once. 'Harri, are you okay?' she added anxiously.

'I'm fine,' said Harri shortly. 'I haven't got much time. Grandfather thinks I'm getting my Invisibility Cloak. Listen...'

Quickly she told them where she was going, and why. She did not pause either for gasps of horror or for hasty questions; they could work out the finer details for themselves later.

'...so you see what this means?' Harri finished at a gallop. 'Grandfather won't be here tonight, so Draco's going to have another clear shot at whatever he's up to. No, listen to me!' she hissed angrily, as both Ron and Hermione showed every sign of interrupting. 'I know Draco is a Death Eater, and that vision of mine confirmed it. Here -' She shoved the Marauder's Map into Neville's hand. 'You've got to watch him and you've got to watch Uncle Sev, too. Use anyone else who you can rustle up from the DA. The contact Galleons should still work. Grandfather says he's put extra protection in the school, but if Uncle Sev's involved, he'll know what Grandfather's protection is, and how to avoid it - but he won't be expecting you lot to be on the watch, will he?'

'Harri -' began Hermione, her eyes huge with fear.

'I haven't got time to argue,' Harri said curtly. 'Take this as well -' She thrust the Felix Felicis into Ron's hands. 'Share it between yourselves and any other DA member. I'd better go, Grandfather's waiting -'

'No!' said Hermione. 'We don't want it, you take it, who knows what you're going to be facing?'

'I'll be fine, I'll be with Grandfather, plus my Valkyrie instincts will come in handy,' said Harri. 'I want to know you lot are okay...don't look like that, Hermione, I'll see you later.'

And she was off, hurrying back through the portrait hole towards the Entrance Hall.

Albus was waiting beside the oaken front doors. He turned as Harri came skidding out on to the topmost stone step.

'I would like you to wear your Cloak, please,' said Albus, and he waited until Harri had thrown it on before saying, 'Very good. Shall we go?'

Albus set off at once down the stone steps, his own travelling cloak barely stirring in the still summer air. Harri hurried alongside him under the Invisibility Cloak.

'But what will people think when they see you leaving, Grandfather?' Harri asked, her mind on Draco and Severus.

'That I am off into Hogsmeade for a drink,' said Albus lightly. 'I sometimes offer Rosmerta my custom, or else visit the Hog's Head...or I appear to. It is as good a way as any of disguising one's true destination.'

They made their way down the drive in the gathering twilight. The air was full of the smells of warm grass, lake water and wood smoke from Hagrid's cabin. It was difficult to believe that they were heading for anything dangerous or frightening.

'Grandfather,' said Harri quietly, as the gates at the bottom of the drive came into view, 'will we be Apparating?'

'Yes,' said Albus. 'You can Apparate now, I believe?'

'Yes,' said Harri, 'but I haven't got a licence.'

'No matter,' said Albus, 'I can assist you again.'

They turned out of the gates into the twilit, deserted lane to Hogsmeade. Darkness descended fast as they walked and by the time they reached the High Street night was falling in earnest. Lights twinkled from windows over shops and as they neared the Three Broomsticks they heard raucous shouting.

'- and stay out!' shouted Madam Rosmerta, forcibly ejecting a grubby-looking wizard. 'Oh, hello, Albus...you're out late...'

'Good evening, Rosmerta...forgive me, I'm off to the Hog's Head...no offence, but I feel like a quieter atmosphere tonight...plus I wish to talk with my brother.'

A minute later they turned the corner into the side street where the Hog's Head's sign creaked a little, though there was no breeze. In contrast to the Three Broomsticks, the pub appeared to be completely empty.

'It will not be necessary for us to enter,' muttered Albus, glancing around. 'As long as nobody sees us go...now place your hand upon my arm, Harri. There is no need to grip too hard, I am merely guiding you. On the count of three - one...two...three...'

Harri turned and before she knew it she could smell salt and hear rushing waves; a light, chilly breeze ruffled her hair as she looked out at moonlit sea and star-strewn sky. She was standing upon a high outcrop of dark rock, water foaming and churning below her. She glanced over her shoulder. A towering cliff stood behind them, a sheer drop, black and faceless. A few large chunks of rock, such as the one upon which Harri and Albus were standing, looked as though they had broken away from the cliff face at some point in the past. It was a bleak, harsh view, the sea and the rock unrelieved by any tree or sweep of grass or sand.

'What do you think?' asked Albus. He might have been asking Harri's opinion on whether it was a good site for a picnic.

'You came here for holidays?' asked Harri, who could not imagine a less cosy spot for a day trip.

'Not here, precisely,' said Albus. 'There is a village of sorts about halfway along the cliffs behind us. But the cave lies a little farther on. Come.'

Albus beckoned Harry to the very edge of the rock where a series of jagged niches made footholds leading down to boulders that lay half-submerged in water and closer to the cliff. It was a treacherous descent and Albus, hampered slightly by his withered hand, moved slowly. The lower rocks were slippery with seawater. Harri could feel flecks of cold salt spray hitting her face.

'Lumos,' said Albus, as he reached the boulder closest to the cliff face.

A thousand flecks of golden light sparkled upon the dark surface of the water a few feet below where he crouched; the black wall of rock beside him was illuminated too.

'You see?' said Albus quietly, holding his wand a little higher. Harri saw a fissure in the cliff into which dark water was swirling. 'You will not object to getting a little wet?'

'No,' replied Harri.

'Then take off your Invisibility Cloak - there is no need for it now - and let us take the plunge.' And with the sudden agility of a much younger man, Albus slid from the boulder, landed in the sea, and began to swim, with a perfect breaststroke, toward the dark slit in the rock face, his lit wand held in his teeth.

Harri was go glad she had thought ahead. She quickly took off her clothes, until she was wearing nothing more than a bikini. She stuffed her clothes and clock in a small bag she had bought. After that, she dived into the uninviting water and swam after her grandfather, ignoring how cold the water was.

The fissure soon opened into a dark tunnel that Harri could tell would be filled with water at high tide. The slimy walls were barely three feet apart and glimmered like wet tar in the passing light of Albus' wand. A little way in, the passageway curved to the left, and Harri saw that it extended far into the cliff. She continued to swim in Albus' wake.

Then she saw Albus rising out of the water ahead, his silver hair and dark robes gleaming. When Harri reached the spot she found steps that led into a large cave. She clambered up them, before drying herself with magic and putting her dry clothes back on to keep warm. Albus was standing in the middle of the cave, his wand held high as he turned slowly on the spot, examining the walls and ceiling.

'Yes, this is the place,' said Albus. 'It has known magic.'

Harri watched as Albus continued to revolve on the spot, evidently concentrating on things Harri could not see.

'This is merely the antechamber, the entrance hall,' said Albus, after a moment or two. 'We need to penetrate the inner place. Now it is Lord Voldemort's obstacles that stand in our way, rather than those nature made.'

Albus approached the wall of the cave and caressed it with his blackened fingertips, murmuring words in a strange tongue that Harri did not understand. Twice Albus walked right around the cave, touching as much of the rough rock as he could, occasionally pausing, running his fingers backward and forward over a particular spot, until finally he stopped, his hand pressed flat against the wall.

'Here,' he said. 'We go on through here. The entrance is concealed.' Albus stepped back from the cave wall and pointed his wand at the rock. For a moment, an arched outline appeared there, blazing white as though there was a powerful light behind the crack, but then the outline was gone, leaving the rock as bare and solid as ever.

Albus didn't try any more magic, but simply stood there staring at it intently, as though something extremely interesting was written on it. Harri stayed quite still; she did not want to break her grandfather's concentration. Then, after two solid minutes, Albus said quietly, 'Oh, surely not. So crude.'

'What is it, Grandfather?'

'I rather think,' said Albus, putting his uninjured hand inside his robes and drawing out a short silver knife of the kind Harri used to chop potion ingredients (she didn't want to know why he was carrying one of those around), 'that we are required to make payment to pass.'

'Payment? You've got to give the door something?'

'Yes. Blood, if I am not much mistaken.'

'Blood?'

'I said it was crude,' said Albus, who sounded disdainful, even disappointed, as though Voldemort had fallen short of higher standards Albus expected of his son. 'The idea, as I am sure you will have gathered, is that your enemy must weaken him- or herself to enter. Once again, Lord Voldemort fails to grasp that there are much more terrible things than physical injury.'

'I still wouldn't say it's crude,' muttered Harri, as Albus used the knife, cutting his injured hand. Harri would have protested, but she knew that she would be wasting her breath. 'It'd say that it's cruel.'

As the rock face was peppered with dark, glistening drops of blood, a blazing silver outline of an arch appeared in the wall once more, and this time it did not fade away: The blood-spattered rock within it simply vanished, leaving an opening into what seemed total darkness.

'After me, I think,' said Albus, and he walked through the archway with Harri on his heels, lighting her own wand hastily as she went. She didn't really need the light, but she knew her grandfather's sight wasn't as sharp as her own.

An eerie sight met their eyes: They were standing on the edge of a great black lake, so vast that Harri could not make out the distant banks, in a cavern so high that the ceiling too was out of sight. A misty greenish light shone far away in what looked like the middle of the lake; it was reflected in the completely still water below. The greenish glow and the light from the two wands were the only things that broke the otherwise velvety blackness, though their rays did not penetrate as far as Harri would have expected. The darkness was somehow denser than normal darkness.

'Let us walk,' said Albus quietly. 'Be very careful not to step into the water. Stay close to me.' He set off around the edge of the lake, and Harri followed close behind him. Their footsteps made echoing, slapping sounds on the narrow rim of rock that surrounded the water. On and on they walked, but the view did not vary: on one side of them, the rough cavern wall, on the other, the boundless expanse of smooth, glassy blackness, in the very middle of which was that mysterious greenish glow. Harri found the place and the silence oppressive, unnerving.

'Grandfather?' she said finally. 'Do you think the Horcrux is here?'

'Oh yes,' said Dumbledore. 'Yes, I'm sure it is. The question is; how do we get to it?'

'I guess we could try a Summoning Charm, but that would be too simple,' said Harri. Her uncle was a very intelligent man - when it came to certain things - and she knew that he would have made it difficult for someone to steal and destroy his Horcrux.

'Certainly we could,' said Albus, stopping so suddenly that Harri almost walked into him. 'Why don't you do it?'

Harri had not expected this, but cleared her throat and said loudly, wand aloft, 'Accio Horcrux!'

With a noise like an explosion, something very large and pale erupted out of the dark water some twenty feet away; before Harri could see what it was, it had vanished again with a crashing splash that made great, deep ripples on the mirrored surface. Harri leapt backward in shock and hit the wall; her heart was still thundering as she turned to Albus.

'What was that?'

'Something, I think, that is ready to respond should we attempt to seize the Horcrux.'

Harri looked back at the water. The surface of the lake was once more shining black glass: The ripples had vanished unnaturally fast; Harri's heart, however, was still pounding.

'Did you think that would happen?'

'I thought something would happen if we made an obvious attempt to get our hands on the Horcrux.'

'But we don't know what the thing was,' said Harri, looking at the sinisterly smooth water.

'What the things are, you mean,' said Albus. 'I doubt very much that there is only one of them. Shall we walk on?'

'Do you think we're going to have to go into the lake?'

'Into it? Only if we are very unfortunate.'

'You don't think the Horcrux is at the bottom?'

'Oh no...I think the Horcrux is in the middle.' said Albus, pointing towards the misty green light in the centre of the lake.

'So we're going to have to cross the lake to get to it?'

'Yes, I think so.'

'Great,' muttered Harri, thinking that they might have to go swimming. Her thoughts drifted off to thinking about the different sorts of creatures that might lurk beneath the black glassy water.

'Aha,' said Albus, and he stopped again; this time, Harri really did walk into him; for a moment she toppled on the edge of the dark water, and Albus' uninjured hand closed tightly around her upper arm, pulling her back. 'So sorry, Harri, I should have given warning. Stand back against the wall, please; I think I have found the place.'

Harri had no idea what Albus meant; this patch of dark bank was exactly like every other bit as far as she could tell, but Albus seemed to have detected something special about it. This time he was running his hand, not over the rocky wall, but through the thin air, as though expecting to find and grip some-thing invisible.

'Oho,' said Albus happily, seconds later.

His hand had closed in midair upon something Harri could not see. Albus moved closer to the water; Harri watched nervously as the tips of Albus' buckled shoes found the utmost edge of the rock rim. Keeping his hand clenched in midair, Albus raised his wand with the other and tapped his fist with the point. Immediately a thick coppery green chain appeared out of thin air, extending from the depths of the water into Albus' clenched hand. Albus tapped the chain, which began to slide through his fist like a snake, coiling itself on the ground with a clinking sound that echoed noisily off the rocky walls, pulling something from the depths of the black water. Harri gasped as the ghostly prow of a tiny boat broke the surface, glowing as green as the chain, and floated, with barely a ripple, toward the place on the bank where Harri and Albus stood.

'How did you know that was there?' Harri asked in astonishment.

'Magic always leaves traces,' said Albus, as the boat hit the bank with a gentle bump, 'sometimes very distinctive traces. I taught Tom, plus raised him. I know his style.'

'You'll have to teach me,' said Harri as she climbed into the boat.

Albus soon followed her, coiling the chain onto the floor. They were crammed in together; Harri could not comfortably sit, but crouched, her knees jutting over the edge of the boat, which began to move at once. There was no sound other than the silken rustle of the boat's prow cleaving the water; it moved without their help, as though an invisible rope was pulling it onward toward the light in the centre. Soon they could no longer see the walls of the cavern; they might have been at sea except that there were no waves. Moments later, the greenish light seemed to be growing larger at last, and within minutes, the boat had come to a halt, bumping gently into a small island of smooth rock in the centre of the lake.

'Careful not to touch the water,' said Albus again as Harri climbed out of the boat.

The island was no larger than Albus' office, an expanse of flat dark stone on which stood nothing but the source of that greenish light, which looked much brighter when viewed close to. Harri squinted at it; at first, she thought it was a lamp of some kind, but then he saw that the light was coming from a stone basin rather like the Pensieve, which was set on top of a pedestal. Albus approached the basin and Harri followed. Side by side, they looked down into it. The basin was full of an emerald liquid emitting that phosphorescent glow.

'What is it?' asked Harri quietly.

'I am not sure,' admitted Albus. 'Something more worrisome than blood, however.' Albus pushed back the sleeve of his robe over his blackened hand, and stretched out the tips of his burned fingers toward the surface of the potion.

'Grandfather, no, don't touch — !'

'I cannot touch it,' said Albus, smiling faintly as his granddaughter's concern. 'See? I cannot approach any nearer than this. You try.'

Staring, Harri put her hand into the basin and attempted to touch the potion. She met an invisible barrier that prevented her coming within an inch of it. She then stepped aside, knowing that her grandfather would want to examine the stone basin, and she was right. The moment she had moved, Albus raised his wand and made complicated movements over the surface of the-potion, murmuring soundlessly. Nothing happened, except perhaps that the potion glowed a little brighter.

'You think the Horcrux is in there?'

'Oh yes. But how to reach it? This potion cannot be penetrated by hand, Vanished, parted, scooped up, or siphoned away, nor can it be Transfigured, Charmed, or otherwise made to change its nature. I can only conclude that this potion is supposed to be drunk.'

'What? No!' Yelled Harri as her grandfather made goblet appear before scooping some potion into it. 'What if— what if it kills you?'

'Oh, I doubt that it would work like that,' said Albus easily. 'Lord Voldemort would not want to kill the person who reached this island. Not until he had found out why they were after his horcruxes, anyway.' He frowned slightly at the emerald liquid, evidently thinking hard. 'Undoubtedly,' he said, finally, 'this potion must act in a way that will prevent me taking the Horcrux. It might paralyse me, cause me to forget what I am here for, create so much pain I am distracted, or render me incapable in some other way. This being the case, Harri, it will be your job to make sure I keep drinking, even if you have to tip the potion into my protesting mouth. You understand?'

Their eyes met over the basin, each pale face lit with that strange, green light. Harri did not speak. Was this why she had been invited along — so that she could force-feed her grandfather a potion that might cause him unendurable pain?

'You remember,' said Albus, 'the condition on which I brought you with me?'

Harri stared at her grandfather, before saying sadly, 'You have my word, Grandfather.

Albus smiled reassuringly and lowered the goblet into the potion. For a split second, Harri hoped that he would not be able to touch the potion with the goblet, but it sank into the surface as nothing else had; when the glass was full to the brim, Albus lifted it to his mouth. 'Your good health, Harri.' And he drained the goblet. Harri watched, terrified, her hands gripping the rim of the basin so hard that her fingertips were numb.

'Grandfather?' she said anxiously, as Albus lowered the empty glass. 'How do you feel?'

Albus shook his head, his eyes closed. Harri wondered whether he was in pain. Albus plunged the glass blindly back into the basin, refilled it, and drank once more. In silence, Albus drank three goblets full of the potion. Then, halfway through the fourth goblet, he staggered and fell forward against the basin. His eyes were still closed, his breathing heavy.

'Grandfather?' Asked a panicked Harri. 'Can you hear me?'

Albus did not answer. His face was twitching as though he was deeply asleep, but dreaming a horrible dream. His grip on the goblet was slackening; the potion was about to spill from it. Harri reached forward and grasped the cup, holding it steady.

'Grandfather, can you hear me?' she repeated loudly, her voice echoing around the cavern.

Albus panted and then spoke in a voice Harri did not recognise, for she had never heard Albus frightened like this.

'I don't want...Don't make me...'

Harri closed her eyes, and did as her grandfather had asked. She continued to force the terrible potion down his throat, ignoring his pleads for her to stop. When Harri had poured the last of the potion into his mouth, he gave a rattling gasp, closed his eyes and fell still.

'No!' Screamed Harri, shaking Albus, 'No, you're not dead, you said it wasn't poison, wake up, wake up — Rennervate!' she cried, her wand pointing at Albus' chest; there was a flash of red light but nothing happened. 'Rennervate — Grandfather — please —' Sobbed Harri.

Albus gave a little groan and opened his eyes. Relief quickly filled Harri's heart.

'Water,' mumbled Albus.

'I'll go get you some,' she said quickly, before she leapt to her feet and seized the goblet she had dropped. She knew it would be useless, trying to fill the goblet with magic, but she tried it anyway, and when it filled up, before disappearing. She knew what she had to do. She knew, instinctively, the only way left to get water, because Voldemort had planned it so...She flung herself over to the edge of the rock and plunged the goblet into the lake, bringing it up full to the brim of icy water which did not vanish.

She quickly hurried back over to Albus and gently poured the water down his throat, before looking up sharply at the dark water. The surface of the lake was no longer mirror-smooth; it was churning, and everywhere Harri looked, white heads and hands were emerging from the dark water, men and women and children with sunken, sightless eyes were moving toward the rock: an army of the dead rising from the black water. She now knew what was beneath the surface, and she wished we didn't.

'That's not good,' muttered Harri, rising to her feet to protect her weakened grandfather. Raising her wand, she made a ring of crimson and gold fire surround the island to repel the advancing enemies. She then turned to Albus.

'We have to get out of here now, Grandfather!' Harri said firmly, quickly grabbing the locket that was at the bottom of the basin.

'I am weak...' he said.

'Don't worry, Grandfather,' said Harri at once, anxious about Albus' extreme pallor and by his air of exhaustion. 'Don't worry; I'll get us back... Lean on me.'

Harri, who was shaking all over, thought for a moment that Albus might not be able to climb into the boat; he staggered a little as he attempted it. Harri seized him and helped him back to his seat. The entire time, Harri made sure that they were protected by fire. Once they were both safely jammed inside again, the boat began to move back across the black water, away from the rock, still encircled by that ring of fire, and it seemed that the Inferi swarming below them did not dare resurface.

They reached the bank with a little bump and Harri leapt out, and then turned quickly to help Albus. The moment that they reached the bank she let the ring of fire vanished, but the Inferi did not emerge again from the water. The little boat sank into the water once more; clanking and tinkling, its chain slithered back into the lake too. Albus gave a great sigh and leaned against the cavern wall. Pulling Albus' uninjured arm around her shoulders, Harri guided Albus back around the lake, bearing most of his weight.

'The protection was...after all...well-designed,' said Albus faintly. 'One alone could not have done it...You did well, very well, Harri...'

'Don't talk now,' Harri said firmly, fearing how inaudible Albus' voice had become and how much his feet dragged. 'Save your energy. We'll soon be out of here.'

'The archway will have sealed again. My knife...'

'There's no need, I got cut on the rock,' Harri said firmly again. 'Just tell me where...'

'Here...'

Harri wiped her grazed forearm upon the stone: Having received its tribute of blood, the archway reopened instantly. They crossed the outer cave, and Harri helped Albus back into the icy seawater that filled the crevice in the cliff.

'It's going to be all right, Grandfather,' Harri said over and over again, more worried by Albus' silence than she had been by his weakened voice. 'We're nearly there...I can Apparate us both back...Don't worry...'

'I am not worried, Harri,' said Albus, his voice a little stronger despite the freezing water. 'I am with you.'

Harri smiled at the amount of confidence her grandfather had of her, before Apparating them back to Hogsmeade.

'We did it, Grandfather!' Harri whispered with difficulty the moment they arrived in Hogsmeade. 'We did it! We got the Horcrux!'

Albus staggered against her. For a moment, Harri thought that her inexpert Apparition had thrown Albus off-balance; then she saw his face, paler and damper than ever in the distant light of a streetlamp.

'Grandfather, are you all right?'

'I've been better,' said Albus weakly, though the corners of his mouth twitched. 'That potion...was no health drink...'

And to Harri's horror, Albus sank on to the ground.

'Grandfather - it's okay, you're going to be all right, don't worry - We need to get you up to the school...Madam Pomfrey...'

'No,' said Albus. 'It is...Sev whom I need...but I do not think...I can walk very far just yet...'

'Right - I'm going to knock on a door, find a place you can stay - then I can run and get Uncle Sev - but I'm going to have to leave you for a moment so I can -'

Before Harri could saying thing else, she heard running footsteps. Her heart leapt: somebody had seen them, somebody knew they needed help - and looking around she saw Madam Rosmerta scurrying down the dark street towards them on high-heeled, fluffy slippers, wearing a silk dressing-gown embroidered with dragons.

'I saw you Apparate as I was pulling my bedroom curtains! Thank goodness, thank goodness, I couldn't think what to - but what's wrong with Albus?'

She came to a halt, panting, and stared down, wide-eyed, at Albus.

'He's hurt,' said Harri. 'Madam Rosmerta, can he come into the Three Broomsticks while I go up to the school and get help for him?'

'You can't go up there alone! Don't you realise - haven't you seen -?'

'If you help me support him,' said Harri, not listening to her, 'I think we can get him inside -'

'What has happened?' asked Albus, interrupting Harri. 'Rosmerta, what's wrong?'

'The - the Dark Mark, Albus.'

And she pointed into the sky, in the direction of Hogwarts. Dread flooded Harri at the sound of the words...she turned and looked.

There it was, hanging in the sky above the school: the blazing green skull with a serpent tongue, the mark Death Eaters left behind whenever they had entered a building...wherever they had murdered...

'When did it appear?' asked Albus, and his hand clenched painfully upon Harri's shoulder as he struggled to his feet. It was then Harri realised that she hadn't told her grandfather about the vision she had.

'Must have been minutes ago, it wasn't there when I put the cat out, but when I got upstairs -'

'We need to return to the castle at once,' said Albus. 'Rosmerta, we need transport - brooms -'

'I've got a couple behind the bar,' she said, looking very frightened. 'Shall I run and fetch -?'

'No, Harri can do it.'

Harri raised her wand at once.

'Accio Rosmerta's brooms.'

A second later they heard a loud bang as the front door of the pub burst open; two brooms had shot out into the street and were racing each other to Harri's side, where they stopped dead, quivering slightly, at waist height.

'Rosmerta, please send a message to the Ministry,' said Albus, as he mounted the broom nearest him. 'It might be that nobody within Hogwarts has yet realised anything is wrong...Harri, put on your Invisibility Cloak.'

Harri pulled her Cloak out of her bag and threw it over herself before mounting her broom; Madam Rosmerta was already tottering back towards her pub as Harri and Albus kicked off from the ground and rose up into the air. As they sped towards the castle, Harri glanced sideways at Albus, ready to grab him should he fall, but the sight of the Dark Mark seemed to have acted upon Albus like a stimulant: he was bent low over his broom, his eyes fixed upon the Mark, his long silver hair and beard flying behind him in the night air. And Harri, too, looked ahead at the skull, and fear swelled inside her like a venomous bubble, compressing her lungs, driving all other discomfort from her mind...

How long had they been away? Had Ron, Hermione and her other friends' luck run out by now? Was it one of them who had caused the Mark to be set over the school? And if it was...she was the one who had told them to patrol the corridors, she had asked them to leave the safety of their beds ... would she be responsible, again, for the death of a friend?

Minutes later, Harri and Albus were standing in the Astronomy tower, underneath the Dark Mark. The tower was empty.

'What does it mean?' Harri asked Dumbledore, looking up at the green skull with its serpent's tongue glinting evilly above them. 'Is it the real Mark? Has someone definitely been - Grandfather?'

In the dim green glow from the Mark Harri saw Albus clutching at his chest with his blackened hand.

'Go and wake Sev,' said Albus faintly but clearly. 'Tell him what has happened and bring him to me. Do nothing else, speak to nobody else and do not remove your Cloak. I shall wait here.'

Harri nodded and hurried over to the door leading to the spiral staircase, but her hand had only just closed upon the iron ring of the door when she heard running footsteps on the other side. She looked round at Albus, who gestured to her to retreat. Harri backed away, drawing her wand, and the dagger she carried, as she did so.

The door burst open and somebody erupted through it and shouted: 'Expelliarmus!'

Harri's body became instantly rigid and immobile, and she felt himself fall back against the Tower wall, propped like an unsteady statue, unable to move or speak. She intently knew what happened, as Albus' wand went flying outside the tower. Albus had wordlessly immobilised Harri, and the second he had taken to perform the spell had cost him the chance of defending himself. Harri glared at her grandfather. Why did he immobilise her? She was could protect him from anyone that threatened them. She would always -

'Good evening, Draco.' Said Albus lightly.

Harri's eyes snapped to the person that had disarmed Albus. Her eyes narrowed. If she was frozen at the current moment she would have thumped him one for betraying her.

Draco stepped forwards, glancing around quickly to check that he and Albus were alone. His eyes fell upon the second broom.

'Who else is here?'

'A question I might ask you. Or are you acting alone?'

Harri saw Draco's pale eyes shift back to Albus in the greenish glare of the Mark.

'No,' he said. 'I've got back-up. There are Death Eaters here in your school tonight.'

'Well, well,' said Albus, as though Draco was showing him an ambitious homework project. 'Very good indeed. You found a way to let them in, did you?'

Draco nodded.

'Ingenious,' said Albus. 'Yet...forgive me...where are they now? You seem unsupported.'

'They met some of your guard. They're having a fight down below. They won't be long ... I came on ahead. I - I've got a job to do.'

'Well, then, you must get on and do it, my dear boy,' said Albus softly.

There was silence. Harri stood imprisoned within her own invisible, paralysed body, staring at the two of them, her ears straining to hear sounds of the Death Eaters' distant fight, and in front of her, Draco did nothing but stare at Albus who, incredibly, smiled.

'Draco, Draco, you are not a killer.'

Draco said nothing, but then he whispered, 'Yes I am. I nearly killed both Katie and Ron.'

'Nearly is the key word and it was an accident as you desperately tried to attack me. Forgive me, Draco, but they have been feeble attempts...so feeble, to be honest, that I wonder whether your heart has been really in it...'

'It has been in it!' Draco said too quickly as he looked around as though someone might be listening in to their conversation. 'I've been working on it all year, and tonight -'

Somewhere in the depths of the castle below Harri heard a muffled yell. Draco stiffened and glanced over his shoulder.

'Somebody is putting up a good fight,' said Albus conversationally. 'But you were saying...yes, you have managed to introduce Death Eaters into my school which, I admit, I thought impossible...how did you do it?'

Draco said nothing: he was still listening to whatever was happening below and seemed almost as paralysed as Harri was.

'Perhaps you ought to get on with the job alone,' suggested Albus. 'What if your back-up has been thwarted by my guard? As you have perhaps realised, there are members of the Order of the Phoenix here tonight, too. And after all, you don't really need help...I have no wand at the moment...I cannot defend myself.'

Draco merely stared at him, looking horrified.

'I see,' said Albus kindly, when Draco neither moved nor spoke. 'You are afraid to act until they join you.'

'I'm not afraid!' snarled Draco, though he still made no move to hurt Albus. 'It's you who should be scared!'

'But why? I don't think you will kill me, Draco. Killing is not nearly as easy as the innocent believe...so tell me, while we wait for your friends... how did you smuggle them in here? It seems to have taken you a long time to work out how to do it.'

Draco looked as though he was fighting down the urge to vomit. He gulped and took several deep breaths; his wand pointing directly at the latter's heart. Then, as though he could not help himself, he said, 'I had to mend that broken Vanishing Cabinet that no one's used for years. The one Montague got lost in last year.'

'Aaaah.' Albus' sigh was half a groan. He closed his eyes for a moment. 'That was clever... there is a pair, I take it?'

'The other's in Borgin and Burkes,' said Draco, 'and they make a kind of passage between them. Montague told me that when he was stuck in the Hogwarts one, he was trapped in limbo but sometimes he could hear what was going on at school, and sometimes what was going on in the shop, as if the Cabinet was travelling between them, but he couldn't make anyone hear him...in the end he managed to Apparate out, even though he'd never passed his test. He nearly died doing it. Everyone thought it was a really good story, but I was the only one who realised what it meant - even Borgin didn't know - I was the one who realised there could be a way into Hogwarts through the Cabinets if I fixed the broken one.'

'Very good,' murmured Albus. 'So the Death Eaters were able to pass from Borgin and Burkes into the school to help you... a clever plan, a very clever plan.''

Draco just continued to look at Albus, expression unreadable.

'But there were times,' Albus went on, 'weren't there, when you were not sure you would succeed in mending the Cabinet? And you resorted to crude and badly judged measures such as sending me a cursed necklace that was bound to reach the wrong hands...poisoning mead there was only the slightest chance I might drink...'

'Yeah, well, you still didn't realise who was behind that stuff, did you?' muttered Draco, as Albus slid a little down the ramparts, the strength in his legs apparently fading, and Harri struggled fruitlessly, against the enchantment binding her.

'As a matter of fact, I did,' said Albus. 'I was sure it was you.'

'Why didn't you stop me, then?' Draco demanded, sounding almost desperate. Had he wanted to be stopped?

'I tried, Draco. Sev has been keeping watch over you on my orders -'

'He hasn't been doing your orders, he promised my mother -'

'Of course that is what he would tell you, Draco, but -'

'He's a double-agent! He isn't working for you, you just think he is!'

'We must agree to differ on that, Draco. It so happens that I trust my youngest son -'

'Well, you're losing your grip, then!' huffed Draco.

'You must have had an accomplice,' continued Albus conversationally. 'Someone in Hogsmeade, someone who was able to slip Katie the - the - aaaah...' Albus closed his eyes again and nodded, as though he was about to fall asleep. '...of course...Rosmerta. How long has she been under the Imperius Curse?'

Draco shrugged.

There was another yell from below, rather louder than the last. Draco looked nervously over his shoulder again, then back at Albus, who went on, 'So poor Rosmerta was forced to lurk in her own bathroom and pass that necklace to any Hogwarts student who entered the room unaccompanied? And the poisoned mead...well, naturally, Rosmerta was able to poison it for you before she sent the bottle to Slughorn, believing that it was to be my Christmas present...yes, very neat...very neat...poor Mr Filch would not, of course, think to check a bottle of Rosmerta's...tell me, how have you been communicating with Rosmerta? I thought we had all methods of communication in and out of the school monitored.'

'Enchanted coins,' said Draco, as though he was compelled to keep talking, though his wand hand was shaking badly. 'I had one and she had the other and I could send her messages -'

'Isn't that the secret method of communication the Harri came up with for your secret group last year?' asked Albus. His voice was light and conversational, but Harri saw him slip an inch lower down the wall as he said it.

'That's where I got the idea from,' admitted Draco.

'So tell me, Draco, you have had several long minutes now to kill me. We are quite alone. I am more defenceless than you can have dreamed of finding me, and still you have not acted...' said Albus.

Draco's mouth contorted involuntarily, as though he had tasted something very bitter.

'Now, about tonight,' Albus went on, 'I am a little puzzled about how it happened...you knew that I had left the school? But of course,' he answered his own question, 'Rosmerta saw me leaving, she tipped you off using your ingenious coins, I'm sure...'

Draco nodded again. 'She said you were just going for a drink, you'd be back...'

'Well, I certainly did have a drink...and I came back...after a fashion,' mumbled Albus. 'So you decided to spring a trap for me?'

'We decided to put the Dark Mark over the Tower and get you to hurry up here, to see who'd been killed,' said Draco. 'And it worked.'

'Well...yes and no...' said Albus. 'But am I to take it, then, that nobody has been murdered?'

'Someone's dead,' said Draco and his voice upset. 'One of your people...I don't know who, it was dark...I stepped over the body...I was supposed to be waiting up here when you got back, only your Phoenix lot got in the way...'

'Yes, they do that,' said Albus.

There was a bang and shouts from below, louder than ever; it sounded as though people were fighting on the actual spiral staircase that led to where Albus, Draco and Harri stood.

'There is little time, one way or another,' said Albus. 'So let us discuss your options, Draco.'

'My options!' said Draco sounding hysterical. 'I haven't got any options! I've got to do it! He'll kill me! He'll kill my whole family!'

'I appreciate the difficulty of your position,' said Albus. 'Why else do you think I have not confronted you before now? Because I knew that you would have been murdered if Lord Voldemort realised that I suspected you.'

Draco winced at the sound of the name. Something Harri had never seen him do, since they started dating.

'I did not dare speak to you of the mission with which I knew you had been entrusted, in case he used Legilimency against you,' continued Albus. 'But now at last we can speak plainly to each other...no harm has been done, you have hurt nobody, though you are very lucky that your unintentional victims survived...I can help you, Draco.'

'No, you can't,' said Draco, his wand hand shaking very badly indeed. 'Nobody can. He told me to do it or he'll kill me, after he tortured and murdered my family in front of me. I've got no choice.'

'Come over to the right side, Draco, just like you were planning when you first started dating Harri -,' Draco flinched at the mention of Harri. He looked like he was in pain, '- and we can hide you more completely than you can possibly imagine. What is more, I can send members of the Order to your mother tonight to hide her likewise. Your father is safe at the moment in Azkaban...when the time comes we can protect him too...come over to the right side, Draco...you are not a killer...'

Draco stared at Albus. Harri could see the longing in his eyes to do as Albus said. He lowered his wand. But suddenly footsteps were thundering up the stairs and a second later Draco was buffeted out of the way as four people in black robes burst through the door on to the ramparts. Still paralysed, her eyes staring unblinkingly, Harri gazed in terror upon four strangers: it seemed the Death Eaters had won the fight below.

A lumpy-looking man with an odd lopsided leer gave a wheezy giggle.

'Dumbledore cornered!' he said, and he turned to a stocky little woman who looked as though she could be his sister and who was grinning eagerly. 'Dumbledore wandless, Dumbledore alone! Well done, Draco, well done!'

Draco did not look pleased.

'Good evening, Amycus,' said Albus calmly, as though welcoming the man to a tea party. 'And you've brought Alecto too...charming...'

The woman gave an angry little titter.

'Think your little jokes'll help you on your death bed, then?' she jeered.

'Jokes? No, no, these are manners,' replied Albus. Harri would have laughed if the situation hadn't been so serious and dangerous.

'Do it,' said the stranger standing nearest to Harri, a big, rangy man with matted grey hair and whiskers, whose black Death Eater's robes looked uncomfortably tight. He had a voice like none that Harri had ever heard: a rasping bark of a voice. Harri could smell a powerful mixture of dirt, sweat and, unmistakeably, of blood coming from him. His filthy hands had long yellowish nails.

'Is that you, Fenrir?' asked Albus.

That's right,' rasped the other. 'Pleased to see me, Dumbledore?'

'No, I cannot say that I am...'

Fenrir Greyback grinned, showing pointed teeth. Blood trickled down his chin and he licked his lips slowly, obscenely.

'But you know how much I like kids, Dumbledore.'

'Am I to take it that you are attacking even without the full moon now? This is most unusual...you have developed a taste for human flesh that cannot be satisfied once a month?'

'That's right,' said Greyback. 'Shocks you, that, does it, Dumbledore? Frightens you?'

'Well, I cannot pretend it does not disgust,' said Albus. 'And, yes, I am a little shocked that Draco here invited you, of all people, into the school where his friends live...'

'I didn't,' breathed Draco. He was not looking at Greyback; he did not seem to want to even glance at him. 'I didn't know he was going to come -'

'I wouldn't want to miss a trip to Hogwarts, Dumbledore,' rasped Greyback. 'Not when there are throats to be ripped out...delicious, delicious...Especially when I might have been able to meet your beautiful granddaughter,' he taunted. Albus' face darkened. 'I could do you for afters, Dumbledore...'

'No,' said the fourth Death Eater sharply. He had a heavy, brutal-looking face. 'We've got orders. Draco's got to do it. Now, Draco, and quickly.'

Draco was showing less resolution than ever. He looked terrified as he stared into Albus' face, which was even paler, and rather lower than usual, as he had slid so far down the rampart wall.

'He's not long for this world anyway, if you ask me!' said the lopsided man, to the accompaniment of his sister's wheezing giggles. 'Look at him - what's happened to you, then, Dumby?'

'Oh, weaker resistance, slower reflexes, Amycus,' said Albus. 'Old age, in short...one day, perhaps, it will happen to you...if you are lucky...'

'What's that mean, then, what's that mean?' yelled the Death Eater, suddenly violent. 'Always the same, weren't yeh, Dumby, talking and doing nothing, nothing, I don't even know why the Dark Lord's bothering to kill yeh! Come on, Draco, do it!'

But at that moment, there were renewed sounds of scuffling from below and a voice shouted, 'They've blocked the stairs - Reducto! REDUCTO!'

Harri's heart leapt: so these four had not eliminated all opposition, but merely broken through the fight to the top of the Tower, and, by the sound of it, created a barrier behind them -

'Now, Draco, quickly!' said the brutal-faced man angrily.

But Draco was shaking so badly that he could barely do anything but stare at Albus. His eyes sad and confused.

'Til do it,' snarled Greyback, moving towards Dumbledore with his hands outstretched, his teeth bared.

'I said no!' shouted the brutal-faced man; there was a flash of light and the werewolf was blasted out of the way; he hit the ramparts and staggered, looking furious. Harri's heart was hammering so hard it seemed impossible that nobody could hear her standing there - especially the werewolf -, imprisoned by Albus' spell -if she could only move, she could aim a curse from under the Cloak -

'Draco, do it, or stand aside so one of us -' screeched the woman, but at that precise moment the door to the ramparts burst open once more and there stood Severus, his wand clutched in his hand as his hazel eyes swept the scene, from Albus slumped against the wall, to the four Death Eaters, including the enraged werewolf, and Draco.

'We've got a problem, Severus,' said the lumpy Amycus, whose eyes and wand were fixed alike upon Albus, 'the boy doesn't seem able -'

But somebody else had spoken Severus' name, quite softly.

'Sev...'

The sound frightened Harri beyond anything she had experienced all evening. For the first time, Albus was pleading.

Severus said nothing, but walked forwards and gently pushed Draco out of the way. The three Death Eaters fell back without a word. Even the werewolf seemed cowed. Who wouldn't from the Dark Lord's youngest and favourite brother?

Severus gazed for a moment at Albus, his face unreadable, but Harri noticed there was something causing him pain. It was reflected in his eyes.

'Sev, my son... please...'

Severus raised his wand and pointed it directly at his father.

'Avada Kedavra!'

A jet of green light shot from the end of Severus' wand and hit Albus squarely in the chest. Harri's scream of horror never left her; silent and unmoving, she was forced to watch as her beloved grandfather, mentor, protector and friend was blasted into the air: for a split second he seemed to hang suspended beneath the shining skull, and then he fell slowly backwards, like a great rag doll, over the battlements and out of sight.

* * *

**Facebook page:** link on profile.  
**Written:** 22 November 2011


	9. And So it Begins

**CHAPTER NINE: AND SO IT BEGINS **

Harri stared at the spot where she had seen her beloved grandfather fall from the Astronomy tower, tears pours from her emerald eyes. She could not believe it! It had to be a nightmare! A cold, sick, horrible nightmare! She was snapped back into reality moments later at the sound of her uncle's voice.

'Out of here, quickly,' ordered Severus, tearing his eyes away from the spot the man he had just murder had been.

He seized Draco by the scruff of the neck and forced him through the door ahead of the rest; Greyback and the squat brother and sister followed, the latter both panting excitedly. As they vanished through the door, Harri realised she could move again. What was now holding her paralysed against the wall was not magic, but horror and shock. She threw the Invisibility Cloak aside as the brutal-faced Death Eater, last to leave the tower top, was disappearing through the door. A new emotion had taken place in her body. It was like the emotions she had felt when she thought that Bellatrix had murdered Sirius, only this time it was much stronger. This time she had been betrayed by the two people she had loved the most. Draco's reasoning she could understand, though she was still furious about him not telling her, but Severus'...she was going to find out the truth.

Harri tore down the tower's steps - after she had stunned the last Death Eater - before leaping the last ten steps of the spiral staircase and stopped where she landed, her wand raised. The dimly lit corridor was full of dust; half the ceiling seemed to have fallen in; and a battle was raging before her, but even as she attempted to make out who were fighting whom, she heard the hated voice shout, 'It's over, time to go!' and saw Severus disappearing around the corner at the far end of the corridor; he and Draco seemed to have forced their way through the fight unscathed.

As Harri plunged after them, one of the fighters detached themselves from the fray and flew at her: it was the werewolf, Greyback. He was on top of her before Harri could raise her wand: she fell backward, with filthy matted hair in her face, the stench of sweat and blood filling her nose and mouth, hot greedy breath at her throat -

'Well, well, well, if it is Harrietta Dumbledore,' he half purred. 'You are even more beautiful than I imagined. I bet a pretty little thing like you must taste _wonderful_!' he said, before lowering his mouth close to the struggling Harri's neck.

Just as Harri felt Greyback's mouth about to bite her, his weight was suddenly knocked off her, and someone hurried forward shielding her from view.

'Keep you filthy hands away from my goddaughter!' yelled Sirius, sending curse after curse at the werewolf, until Greyback laid unconscious on the floor.

'Thanks Sirius!' yelled Harri as she tore after Severus and Draco.

As she did, she had to run past a corridor of Hufflepuffs all in their pyjamas who had awoke due to the noise of the battle.

'Harri! We heard a noise, and someone said something about the Dark Mark -' began Ernie.

'Out of the way!' snapped Harri, knocking two boys aside as she sprinted toward the landing and down the remainder of the marble staircase. They had not moved fast enough. The rest of the Hufflepuffs did though. The look she had on her face and the tone of her voice was enough to make anyone move.

The oak front doors had been blasted open, there were smears of blood on the flagstones, and several terrified students stood huddled against the walls, one or two still cowering with their arms over their faces. The giant Gryffindor hourglass had been hit by a curse and the rubies within were still falling, with a loud rattle, onto the flagstones below.

Harri flew across the entrance hall and out into the dark grounds: she could just make out three figures racing across the lawn, heading for the gates beyond which they could Disapparate - by the looks of them, the huge blonde Death Eater and, some way ahead of him, Severus and Draco.

She saw a flash of light in the distance that momentarily silhouetted her quarry. She did not know what it was but continued to run, not yet near enough to get a good aim with a curse. Another flash, shouts, retaliatory jets of light, and Harri understood: Hagrid had emerged from his cabin and was trying to stop the Death Eaters escaping. Harri sped up, to an unnatural sped as an unbidden voice in his head said: not Hagrid...not Hagrid too...

As she got closer she saw the vast outline of Hagrid, illuminated by the light of the crescent moon revealed suddenly behind clouds; the blonde Death Eater was aiming curse after curse at the gamekeeper; but Hagrid's immense strength and the toughened skin he had inherited from his giantess mother seemed to be protecting him. Severus and Draco, however, were still running; they would soon be beyond the gates, able to Disapparate.

Harri tore past Hagrid and his opponent, took aim at her uncle's back, and yelled, 'Stupefy!'

Due to her anger, she missed; the jet of red light soared past Severus' head; Severus shouted, 'Run, Draco!' and turned, wand raised, but once he saw who it was, he lowered it slightly. Draco had ignored Severus' order and looked at the angry, and hurt, Harrietta Dumbledore's tear stained face.

'Go back to the castle, Harrietta!' Severus ordered.

'You are no longer the boss of me, you traitor!' screamed Harri, throwing a curse right at Severus. He blocked it. 'How could you? How could you murder Grandfather? How could you kill your own Father?'

Severus did not answer her, instead he shouted of to the huge Death Eater harassing Hagrid.

'Stop!' he shouted. 'It is time to be gone, before the Ministry turns up!'

'Sure, run away you coward!' yelled Harri. 'What's wrong? You don't want to fight me? Are you scared to hurt me? Why would you care? Go ahead...Kill me. Kill me like you killed him you miserable, disgusting coward!'

Severus looked at Harri before running off with Draco and the other Death Eater. Harri would have followed, but she knew that Hagrid needed her help at the current moment.

'HAGRID!' yelled Harri as she ran to the burning house.

As she approached an enormous figure emerged from out of the flames carrying Fang on his back. With a cry of thankfulness, Harri sank to her knees; she was shaking in every limb.

'Yeh all righ', Harri? Yeh all righ'? Speak ter me, Harri...'

Hagrid's huge, hairy face was swimming above Harri, blocking out the stars.

'I'm all right,' lied Harri. 'Are you?'

'Course I am . . . take more'n that ter finish me.'

Hagrid put his hands under Harri's arms and raised her up with such force that Harri's feet momentarily left the ground before Hagrid set her upright again. She could see blood trickling down Hagrid's cheek from a deep cut under one eye, which was swelling rapidly.

'We should put out your house,' muttered Harri, 'the charm's "Aguamenti".'

'Knew it was summat like that,' mumbled Hagrid, and he raised a smouldering pink, flowery umbrella and said, 'Aguamenti!'

A jet of water flew out of the umbrella tip. Harri raised her wand arm and murmured "Aguamenti" too: Together, they poured water on the house until the last flame was extinguished.

'S'not too bad,' said Hagrid hopefully, a few minutes later looking at the smoking wreck. 'Nothin Dumbledore won' be able to put righ' . . .'

Harri felt as though someone had just pierced her heart with a knife. Hearing her grandfather mentioned - now that her anger had passed - the realisation that he was never coming back had finally sunk in. For a moment Harri tried to keep her lips steady and the tears at bay, but in the end she fell to her knees and started to cry, startling Hagrid.

'Harri, wha - wha's wrong?' Hagrid quickly sat down next to her to comfort her, while Fang butted his head against her. He also was trying to comfort her.

'Unc-Uncle Severus, he - he killed... he killed Grandfather,' cried Harri, burring her face in her hands.

'Don' say that,' said Hagrid roughly. 'Sev kill Dumbledore - his own father - don' be stupid, Harri. Wha's made yeh say tha'?'

'I saw it happen.'

'Yeh couldn' have.'

'I saw it, Hagrid.'

Hagrid shook his head; his expression was disbelieving but sympathetic, and Harri knew that Hagrid thought she had sustained a blow to the head, that she was confused, perhaps by the after effects of a jinx.

'What musta happened was, Dumbledore musta told Severus ter go with them Death Eaters,' Hagrid said confidently. 'I suppose he's gotta keep his cover. Look, let's get yeh back up ter the school. Come on, Harri.' he added, picking her up and putting her back on her feet, before leading her back to the castle.

Harri did not attempt to argue or explain, instead she just blindly followed him as tears continued to pour down her face. She was still shaking uncontrollably. Hagrid would find out soon enough.

The oak front doors stood open ahead of them, light flooding out onto the drive and the lawn. Slowly, uncertainly, dressing-gowned people were creeping down the steps, looking around nervously for some sign of the Death Eaters who had fled into the night. Harri's eyes, however, were fixed upon the ground at the foot of the tallest tower. Even as she stared wordlessly at the place where she thought her grandfather's body must lie, she saw people beginning to move toward it. Then an agonising scream met her ears. The agonising scream of someone who had just lost a loved one. The agonising scream of her Grandmother, Minerva.

Hagrid and the students quickened their pace, but Harri kept hers the same. She could barely see through her tears. When she arrived at the circle of silent and sad observers, they all moved aside and let her pass, sympathy evident on all their faces.

In the middle of the circle was Minerva clinging to Albus' body, screaming for him to wake up, with Rhiannon attempting to pull her daughter away, while tears slowly fell down her cheeks.

Harri eventually stopped and fell down to her knees next to the still figure of her grandfather. His eyes were closed; but for the strange angle of his arms and legs, he might have been sleeping. Harri gazed down at the wise old face - which had given her much advise and comfort over the years - and tried to absorb the enormous and incomprehensible truth: that never again would her grandfather speak to her, never again could he help her, hold her and love her. And it was all because of Severus. The man that she called uncle, but he had been so much more than that. True, they had started off on rough ground, but over the years he had become the face she saw when someone said if she could describe her father. He was the man that had half raised her. He was the man that protected her, taught her and above all, was one of her best friends and like an older brother and father to her...and now; it was as though it had all been an act...a con to trick her into trusting him.

A sob escaped Harri lips and her body began to shake once more. Next thing she knew was that she was in a pair of strong, warm, loving arms. She immediately knew that it was Sirius that was holding her.

'Hush, my princess. It will be all right,' Sirius said gently, trying to comfort her, but it did not work. The only thing that would make her happy would be if Albus opened his eyes as though he had only been sleeping. But that would never happen. Albus Dumbledore was gone...forever...

**-THE UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

The first thing Harri realised when she awoke was the fact that someone was gently stroking her fridge away from her face, and when she opened her eyes, she met the sad eyes of Aurora. She was in the hospital wing - again - with Sirius, Remus, the Weasleys, Neville, Hermione, Luna, Rhiannon, Minerva and Tonks.

'Hey, how do you feel, sweet heart?' Sirius asked, from his seat next to her bed. His eyes were sad and full of worry and concern.

Harri shrugged, trying not to cry again. At the end of the bed, Minerva still had tears flowing down her face.

'Harri, honey...I - I know this will be hard, but I n-need you to tell me exactly how A-Albus d- how it happened,' said Minerva.

Harri did not answer straight away. She did not want to speak about what she had witnessed, but as she looked at her grandmother's desperate face, she knew that Minerva had the right to know.

'Uncle Severus killed him,' sobbed Harri. 'I was there, I saw it. We arrived back on the Astronomy Tower because that's where the Mark was... Grandfather was ill, he was weak, but I think he realised it was a trap when we heard footsteps running up the stairs. He immobilised me, I couldn't do anything, I was under the Invisibility Cloak - and then Draco came through the door and disarmed him -'

Hermione clapped her hands to her mouth and Ron groaned. Luna's mouth trembled.

'- more Death Eaters arrived - and then Uncle Severus - and he did it. The Avada Kedavra.' Harri could not go on, but they all knew what happened next.

Harri looked up at the ceiling and somewhere out in the darkness, Fawkes was singing in a way Harri had never heard before: a stricken lament of terrible beauty. The song pierced through Harri. She wished that it would stop. Why couldn't Fawkes go and sing somewhere else?

When Harri looked back at her friends and family, she could see that they were all lost in their own thought. Although she did not know it, each of them was wondering how Severus and Draco could have done such a thing. The two people they trusted the most. Ron, Fred and George were all secretly planning away to get back at Draco for hurting Harri, their little-sister-in-everything-but-blood, while Minerva was holding her chest, filled with grief of having lost her husband and son all in one day. Aurora, however, was looking down at her engagement ring, her face unreadable.

******-THE UNMASKED MYSTERY-**

After Albus' death, life at Hogwarts began to change. All lessons were suspended, all examinations postponed. Some students were hurried away from Hogwarts by their parents over the next couple of days - the Patil twins were gone before breakfast on the morning following Albus' death and Zacharias Smith was escorted from the castle by his haughty-looking father. Seamus Finnigan, on the other hand, refused point-blank to accompany his mother home; they had a shouting match in the Entrance Hall which was resolved when she agreed that he could remain behind for the funeral, which had meant so much to Harri. Seamus told Harri and Ron, that wizards and witches were pouring into the village, preparing to pay their last respects to Albus, and they were not the only ones.

Some excitement was caused among the younger students, who had never seen it before, when a powder-blue carriage the size of a house, pulled by a dozen giant winged palominos, came soaring out of the sky in the late afternoon before the funeral and landed on the edge of the Forest. Harri watched from a window as a gigantic and handsome olive-skinned, black-haired woman descended the carriage steps and threw herself into the waiting Hagrid's arms. Meanwhile a delegation of Ministry officials, including the Minister for Magic himself, was being accommodated within the castle. Harri was diligently avoiding contact with any of them; she was sure that, sooner or later, she would be asked again to account for Albus' last excursion from Hogwarts. And frankly, she was in no mood to do such a thing and if the Ministry was to harass her, she would not hold back in giving them a piece of her mind.

After Albus' death, Harri spent most of her time along in her room and would not speak unless it was absolutely necessary. Minerva was in even worse shape than Harri having not only lost her husband, but her best friend too. It did not help either that the beautiful weather seemed to mock them; Harri could imagine how it would have been if Albus had not died.

The news of Albus' death had made the front cover of the Daily Prophet and every day the news was the same, about the Aurors trying to find Severus Dumbledore. Harri knew that they were wasting their time. She was sure that he was safely under his brother's wing.

On the day of the funeral, the mood in the Great Hall was subdued. Everybody was wearing their dress robes and no one seemed very hungry. Minerva had left the throne like chair in the middle of the staff table empty. Hagrid's chair was deserted too: Harri thought that perhaps he had not been able to face breakfast; but Severus' place had been unceremoniously filled by Rufus Scrimgeour. Harri avoided his yellowish eyes as they scanned the Hall; Harri had the uncomfortable feeling that Scrimgeour was looking for her, and he soon found her when she enter the hall wearing a long black skirt with a three-quarter length black top with red faint red vines on it. Her long black hair cascaded down her back with a tiara on her forehead. Around her neck was a pendent Albus had given her when he told her the truth of her family. In her hands, she held a few white flowers. She walked straight to her grandmother's side, ignoring everyone from the Ministry, and moments later, Minerva rose to her feet and the mournful hum in the Hall died away at once.

'It is nearly time,' she said, voice shaking. 'Please follow your Heads of House out into the grounds. Gryffindors, please follow Professor Vector.'

As everyone filed out from behind their benches in near silence. Harri glimpsed Slughorn at the head of the Slytherin column, wearing magnificent long emerald-green robes embroidered with silver. She had never seen Professor Sprout, Head of the Hufflepuffs, looking so clean; there was not a single patch of dirt on her hat, and when they reached the Entrance Hall, they found Madam Pince standing beside Filch, she in a thick black veil that fell to her knees, he in an ancient black suit and tie reeking of mothballs.

Once everyone had left the Hall, Rhiannon, Minerva, Harri and Aurora, left the Hall and headed to the Lake where the funeral was to be held. Everyone agreed that it was only fitting for Albus to be laid to rest at Hogwarts. When they arrived at the funeral Harri noted that an extraordinary assortment of people had already settled into half of the chairs: shabby and smart, old and young. Most Harri did not recognise, but there were a few that he did, including members of the Order of the Phoenix: Kingsley Shacklebolt, Mad-Eye Moody, Sirius Black, Tonks, her hair miraculously returned to vividest pink, Remus Lupin, with whom she seemed to be holding hands, Mr and Mrs Weasley, Bill and Fleur and followed by Fred and George, who were wearing jackets of black dragon-skin. Then there was Madame Maxime, who took up two-and-a-half chairs on her own, Tom, the landlord of the Leaky Cauldron, Arabella Figg, the Dursleys' Squib neighbour, the hairy bass player from the wizarding group the Weird Sisters, Ernie, driver of the Knight Bus, Madam Malkin, of the robe shop in Diagon Alley, and some people whom Harry merely knew by sight, such as the witch who pushed the trolley on the Hogwarts Express. The castle ghosts were there too, barely visible in the bright sunlight, discernible only when they moved, shimmering insubstantially in the gleaming air.

Harri sat right up the front with Minerva, Rhiannon, Aurora and Aberforth.

At last the funeral began and a little tufty-haired man in plain black robes had got to his feet and stood now in front of Albus' body. Harri could not hear what he was saying. Odd words floated to her. "Nobility of spirit"..."intellectual contribution"..."greatness of heart"...it did not mean very much. It had little to do with Albus as Harri had known him. She suddenly remembered Albus' idea of a few words: "nitwit", "oddment", "blubber" and "tweak". She smiled sadly. She would do anything to hear him say those words once more.

Harri suddenly became aware of what the tufty-haired man was saying when he was calling upon her to give her respects and presentation to Albus.

'- and now I call upon Harrietta Dumbledore, Albus' most beautiful and precious treasure to sing her goodbyes.'

Harri slowly got to her feet, flowers in hand, and walked to the stand the man had been standing. Her grandfather had always loved music and he loved it when she use to sing, so this was her goodbye to her grandfather.

She began aware of the music playing softly in the background and began to sing. Her voice was like Fawkes sad cries, and by the end, those who were not already crying began to cry. The hurt and anguish in Harri's voice was enough to soften even the coldest of hearts. Even the Slytherins, who had hated Albus, were teary.

Once Harri had finished singing, she turned to the body of her grandfather, and placed the flowers gently on top of him.

'Goodbye Grandfather, I'll miss you so much,' whispered a sobbing Harri. 'But I promise, I'll find every one of Uncle Tom's Horcruxes and I'll mend our broken family. I'll make you proud.' And with that, Harri took her seat, angrily wiping away her tears.

Then, at the end of the funeral, bright, white flames erupted around Albus' body and the table upon which it lay: higher and higher they rose, obscuring the body. White smoke spiralled into the air and made strange shapes: Harri thought, for one heart-stopping moment, that she saw a phoenix fly joyfully into the blue, but next second the fire had vanished. In its place was a white marble tomb, encasing Albus' body and the table on which he had rested.

Slowly, everyone got to their feet and went on their way. Amongst everyone moving, Harri thought that she had seen her Uncle Tom and Severus amongst the shadows, but when she went to get a closer look, there was nothing there and she concluded that it must have been her imagination. Though she could not understand why she would imagine such a thing. Neither one of them cared about their father. Tom was always throwing Killing Curses at him and Severus was the one who actually did kill him.

Harri sighed, and began to walk around the lake, before stopping half way around it and sitting down on one of the large boulders, absently gazing out across the lake. She found it extremely peaceful, that was until...

'Harri!'

Harri groaned and turned to look coldly at Rufus Scrimgeour, who was limping rapidly towards her around the bank, leaning on his walking stick.

'I've been hoping to have a word... do you mind if I sit with you?'

'No,' said Harri indifferently, staring back out across the lake. She would hear what he had to say, and if she did not like it...he would have been better of facing a furious Voldemort.

'Harri, this was a dreadful tragedy, and I'm sorry for your loss,' said Scrimgeour quietly, 'I cannot tell you how appalled I was to hear of it. Your grandfather was a very great wizard. We had our disagreements, as you know, but no one knows better than I -'

'What do you want?' Harri asked flatly. She was not in the mood for games.

Scrimgeour looked annoyed but, as before, hastily modified his expression to one of sorrowful understanding.

'You are, of course, devastated,' he said. 'I know that you were very close to your grandfather. The bond between the two of you -'

'What do you want?' Harri repeated, starting to become annoyed. She knew that he did not feel upset about what had happened.

Scrimgeour stared at Harri, his expression shrewd now.

'The word is that you were with him when he left the school the night that he died.'

'Whose word?' asked Harri.

'Somebody Stupefied a Death Eater on top of the Tower after Dumbledore died. There were also two broomsticks up there. The Ministry can add two and two, Harri.'

'Glad to hear it,' Harri said coldly. 'Well, where I went with Grandfather and what we did is my business. He didn't want people to know.'

'Such loyalty is admirable, of course,' said Scrimgeour, who seemed to be restraining his irritation with difficulty, 'but Dumbledore is gone, Harri. He's gone.'

Harri snapped.

'Don't you think I realise that he is gone?' Y=yelled Harri, standing up furiously, tears streaming from her eyes. 'Do you really think that I need you to come here and tell me that, especially like that? And who do you think you are to come up to a girl who had just lost her grandfather, at the grandfather's funeral and demand such a thing? You have no right to stick your nose in our business, especially on a day like today!'

Scrimgeour glared at her for another moment and Harri glared right back. Just as Scrimgeour was about to say something, a quiet, but cold voice stopped him.

'Minister, might I escort you to the Great Hall. I believe that Harri could use some time along,' said Sirius.

'Black, stay out of this. It has nothing to do with you.' snapped Scrimgeour.

'On the contrary, you are harassing my goddaughter. That makes it my business. Now, shall I escort you to the Great Hall?' Sirius said coldly.

Scrimgeour turned to look at Sirius, anger written all over his face, but catching sight of the anger in Sirius' eyes, he nodded and walked off, with Sirius.

Harri had never felt so grateful to Sirius in all her life. Harri watched as they moved to the castle. She soon became aware of two figures hurrying towards her: Ron and Hermione. The two people she could always count on, no matter what. The two people that were as much her family as Sirius, Aurora and Minerva.

'What did Scrimgeour want?' Hermione whispered, coming to a halt.

'Same as he wanted at Christmas,' shrugged Harri. 'Wanted me to give him inside information on Grandfather.'

Hermione's face darkened. How dare he ask Harri such a thing, especially on a day like today?

Ron seemed to struggle with himself for a moment, and then he said loudly to Hermione, 'Look, let me go back and hit Percy!'

'No,' she said firmly, grabbing his arm.

'It'll make me feel better!'

Harri laughed. Even Hermione grinned a little, though her smile faded as she looked up at the castle.

'I can't bear the idea that we might never come back.' she said softly. 'How can Hogwarts close?'

'Maybe it won't,' said Ron. 'We're not in any more danger here than we are at home, are we? Every where's the same now. I'd even say Hogwarts is safer; there are more wizards inside to defend the place. What d'you reckon, Harri?'

'I'm not coming back even if it does reopen,' admitted Harri.

Ron gaped at her, but Hermione said sadly, 'I knew you were going to say that. But then what will you do? '

'I'm going back to Acacia once more, but it'll be a short visit, long enough for me to gather a few of my belongings, and then I'll be gone for good.'

'But where will you go if you don't come back to school?'

'I'll be tracking down the rest of the Horcruxes.' said Harri, her eyes upon Albus' white tomb, reflected in the water on the other side of the lake. 'That's what he wanted me to do, that's why he told me all about them. If Grandfather was right - and I'm sure he was - there are still four of them out there. I've got to find them and destroy them and then I've got to go after Voldemort himself and end this madness. And if I meet my dear Uncle Severus along the way,' she added bitterly, 'so much better for me, so much worse for him.'

There was a long silence. The crowd had almost dispersed now, the stragglers giving the monumental figure of Grawp a wide berth as he cuddled Hagrid, whose howls of grief were still echoing across the water.

'We'll be there, Harri,' said Ron.

'What?'

'We'll go with you, wherever you're going.'

'No -' said Harri quickly; she had not counted on this; she had meant them to understand that she was undertaking this most dangerous journey alone. She could not bear it if another loved one was lost.

'You said to us once before,' said Hermione quietly, 'that there was time to turn back if we wanted to. We've had time, haven't we?'

'We're with you whatever happens,' said Ron. 'But, mate, you're going to have to come round my mum and dad's house before we do anything else.'

'Why?'

'Bill and Fleur's wedding, remember?'

Harri looked at him, startled; the idea that anything as normal as a wedding could still exist seemed incredible and yet wonderful.

'Yeah, we shouldn't miss that,' she said finally, before turning and looking back at her Grandfather's tomb.

* * *

**Please review the story!**

**A/N: Harri's funeral dress is on facebook.**

**Unmasked Mystery III: **is now up**  
Facebook page: **Link on profile**  
Written: **22 November 2011  
**Updated: ** 8 January 2012

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT CLAIM OWNERSHIP OVER THE ORIGINAL COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL IN THIS STORY. THIS IS A NON-PROFIT FANDUB CREATED BY FANS, FOR FANS. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. FAIR USE ONLY. I DO, HOWEVER, CLAIM SOME COPYRIGHT OVER HARRI SINCE SHE IS HALF BASED ON MY ORIGINAL VALKYRIE CHARACTER, PRINCESS HARRIETTA.**


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